Elevated concentrations of halogenated flame retardants in waste childcare articles from Ireland.

Concentrations of legacy and alternative halogenated flame retardants (HFRs) including chlorinated organophosphate esters (Cl-OPEs), were measured in waste childcare articles (n = 275 for Cl-OPEs, n = 187 for other HFRs) from the Republic of Ireland between 2019 and 2020. Articles studied comprised foams and fabrics from: child car seats, cot mattresses, changing mats, pushchairs, prams, and related items. Fifteen articles (7.7%) exceeded the European Union limit value of 1000 mg/kg for polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) (all due to BDE-209), an additional 15 exceeded the limit for hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD), with 7 articles exceeding the limit for both PBDEs and HBCDD. An even greater proportion of articles contained concentrations exceeding 1000 mg/kg for: tris(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TCIPP) (n = 73, 27%) and tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TDCIPP) (n = 58, 21%), with concentrations greater than 1000 mg/kg also observed for: tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP) (n = 14, 5.1% articles), 2-ethylhexyl tetrabromobenzoate (EH-TBB) (n = 7, 3.7%), decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE), and bis(2-ethylhexyl)tetrabromophthalate (BEH-TEBP) (both n = 5, 2.7%). Overall, 120 samples contained at least one HFR at a concentration exceeding 1000 mg/kg. In addition to the waste management implications of our findings, our data raise concerns about child exposure to HFRs during the use phase of these everyday items.

Informations de copyright

Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Déclaration de conflit d'intérêts

Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.