Substances of very high concern: Challenge to risk management system, capability and fundamental research of chemicals in China

Abstract

Enhancing environmental and health risks of the chimerically available chemicals have been revealed nowadays while their benefit to the society was significantly shown. The risk management of Substances of Very High Concern (SVHCs), the key field for reaching 2020 goal of global risk reduction strategy of chemicals, has been a main point of risk assessment and sound management of the chemicals. China will be the major area of risk management of SVHCs at a global scale in the future, based on the status of global industrial transfer and innovation development, stages of economic and social growth, and available environmental monitoring data. In the past, the China’s risk management system of chemicals laid the predominant stress on the risk controlling and emergency preplan of hazardous chemicals, and the risk management of SVHCs deficit in sound foundation of regulation and legislation oriented by its environmental and health risk. Therefore, more obstacles will be encountered in the risk management of SVHCs in China due to the lack of advanced technological renovation and corresponding experience in risk administration. The researches on strategic and systematic risk assessment of chemicals relevant to SVHCs are insufficient at present because they are less forward-looking, well organized and practicable, even though some breakthroughs on SVHCs researches, including persistent organic pollutants and heavy metal, have been already achieved.