European environmental and labour groups have launched an online web portal aimed at sharing and finding substitutes to hazardous chemicals that they want to phase out.
The tool, called Subsport, gives guidance on how to find safer alternatives to some of the most hazardous chemicals in use worldwide – with case studies covering substances such as perfluorinated substances, brominated flame retardants, PVC and perchloroethylene.
Case studies have been provided by a range of plants, from large multi-nationals to smaller companies, as well as trade unions, hospitals, universities and public procurement bodies.
"Substitution can be a complex, time and money consuming process," comments Lothar Lißner, managing director of Kooperationsstelle Hamburg IFE. "But it can also be relatively quick and easy, if you can find inspiration from what others have already done."
"The objective of this site is to ensure transparency of information contributing to create a society with less chemical hazards," adds Søren Larsen, country managing director of Grontmij in Denmark.
"At Skanska, we substituted injectable mortar for concrete anchoring with a newly developed product that is significantly safer to use," states Eva-Lena Carlén-Johansson, manager sustainability projects at Skanska.
"For us it is important to share that example of substitution through the Subsport database, as it goes well with our work as a leading green project developer and constructor," she adds.
"We see that companies are willing to share their experiences of overcoming substitution challenges and we call on more companies to provide substitution examples to Subsport, so that there are more examples there to guide others," comments Anne-Sofie Andersson, director at ChemSec.
