Armani and other international brands involved in "clothing"

Chemicals such as nonylphenol, which has been banned from being sold and used in Europe, can still be produced and exported to countries with less stringent legal restrictions, such as China.

Last month, a foreign-invested chemical company in Guangdong applied to the Ministry of Environmental Protection for the purchase of 10,000 tons of nonylphenol, which was reduced to 9,600 tons by the Ministry of Environmental Protection. If the application is approved, 9,600 tons of nonylphenol will be used in China. market.

Nonylphenol is a kind of environmental hormone that is often detected in textile wastewater. When it infiltrates into the environment, it will change the sexual development of certain organisms. This kind of endocrine disruptor is listed in the list of banned chemicals in Europe and the United States and other countries. However, more than 50,000 textile factories in China need more nonylphenol, especially in clothing cleaning and printing processes, and nonylphenol is a good helper for “affordable” products.

In addition to imports, according to the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation, China also produces 47,000 tons of nonylphenol per year. Although there is currently no evidence that clothing to which the above chemicals have been added is hazardous in contact with human skin, the persistent nature of nonylphenol that is insoluble in water and that can accumulate in the body is considered to affect the body once it enters the body through the food chain. Health composition**.

Nonylphenol is being consumed by a large number of clothing brands. In 2012, a test report on some brands of the non-governmental organization Greenpeace showed that 63% of the samples contained nonylphenol. Among them are zara, h&m, and other consumer brands. In addition, luxury brands have not been spared. The report shows that 56% of samples tested by Armani contained nonylphenol.

This is only one of the many dangerous chemical components detected in the products of the above-mentioned international brand Chinese suppliers.

It was learned from related departments that the “Chemical Directory of Key Environmental Management Hazardous Chemicals” is currently under the lead of the Bureau of Production Supervision and Supervision. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology is also trying to change the original idea of ​​establishing standards according to the Safety-related standards system.

But so far, China does not have a list of specific hazardous chemicals that require industry to phase out.

Blacklist Prior to the release of the investigation report, Greenpeace targeted the investigation into the use of nonylphenol in the textile industry in order to give enough impact to stakeholders.

Zhang Yan, Director of the Pollution Prevention and Control Project, carried out brand supply chain surveys across the country to understand the actual situation of the suppliers and investigate whether there were records of illegal discharge. After a clear goal, it began purchasing clothing and sent it to an independent European third-party laboratory for testing.

"2011 is mainly a sports brand, and 2012 is mainly a fast-eliminating class." Zhang Yao, a project leader, and colleagues will finalize an apparel category each year, and then select about 20 sales based on sales. The more brand sales, the average In terms of the amount of toxic and hazardous chemicals used, Zhang Hao hopes that these well-known brands can make “detoxification” commitments and strictly supervise their supply chains.

Nike, Adidas, Li Ning and other sports brands were the targets of Greenpeace's first investigation report in 2011. The test report was sent to all companies by mail before it was announced, which pointed out that the 15 famous clothing brands under investigation in China The sewage discharged from home suppliers contains environmental hormones that can infect endocrine and affect the reproductive system. In 2011, seven out of 15 well-known clothing brands had made promises to the community to “detoxify”. Among them, Li Ning is the only domestic brand that has made "detoxification" promises.

The investigation report sent to the brand enterprises often encounters the sinking of the sea. “The hardest part is talking about companies that are unwilling to talk about and have no intentions, and we have no other channels to promote it to do this,” Zhang said. In the two reports of the past two years, Zhejiang private enterprise Metersbonwe was asked to make a commitment, but did not respond.

The purchase and use of nonylphenol does not violate existing Chinese laws. Enterprises believe that China is a developing country. It is difficult for the textile industry to do so. Enterprises have only just started. The government has not yet adopted such laws and regulations. Enterprises can only comply with laws and regulations. How do you ask for so much?

However, at the end of 2013, there will be a group of branded apparel companies receiving emails from Greenpeace. The emails will be notified that the products have been tested and a test report is attached. As in previous years, Greenpeace has chosen to publish the findings of the past year. No one would be pleased to receive an e-mail from this “aggressive” tagged non-governmental organization. The method of publishing a test report is indeed effective. So far, 17 brand companies have made “detoxification” commitments. Shortly after the announcement of Greenpeace’s inspection report, they posted a pledge on their official website to remove toxic chemicals from the supply chain by 2020. usage of.

The first survey report of the Whitelist Greenpeace raised a response from the Ministry of Environmental Protection. In 2011, the Ministry of Environmental Protection held a special seminar on the prevention and control of environmental risks of environmental chemicals and chemical substances, and made suggestions on how to establish and improve a long-term mechanism for environmental management of chemicals. After the second survey report was published at the end of 2012, the Environmental Protection Bureaus of Xiaoshan and Shaoxing in Zhejiang province organized local printing and dyeing companies to participate in the Seminar on Substances of Hazardous Chemicals for Chinese-European Enterprises organized by Greenpeace in March this year.

However, the scientific nature of the report and the position of Greenpeace have still been questioned. Zhang Huailiang, Honorary Chairman of the China Textile Engineering Association, said: "Their work has encouraged us but we can't decide on our actions. We have a critical acceptance of some of their observations. We welcome them on the whole, but we are not blind. ".

The social supervision of Greenpeace has indeed played a role. On August 28th this year, apparel brands including Nike, Adidas and Li Ning will also appear at the Annual Meeting of Social Responsibility of the China Textile Industry Association. They will jointly publish measures for zero emissions of toxic chemicals. This time, the company actively found the China National Textile and Apparel Industry Association. According to Sun Ruizhe, vice president of the China Textile Industry Association, this is related to the previous attack by the Green and Equality Organization.

Just as Greenpeace tried the "blacklist" report, the China National Textile and Apparel Council had taken another path and established a "white list." At present, the association has cooperated with the Japan Fiber Industry Alliance to build a "white list management system." Enterprises that have applied for the system and obtained "white list qualifications" will be recognized by Japanese importers who have joined the system, and their products do not need to be exported. Some banned chemicals are tested.

The banned standards for these chemicals are set by the Japan Fiber Industry Federation and require all textiles imported to Japan to be tested and provided with corporate data in accordance with prescribed test methods. Enterprises that join the “white list management system” will not need to be tested again.

However, there is no corresponding "white list" management measure for nonylphenol, and the export of apparel products containing nonylphenol components has not been restricted too much. Although the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the General Administration of Customs will list nonylphenol as a ban on import and export of substances in 2011, as long as the import enterprises have passed declarations, local pre-trials, expert evaluations, public announcements, and national approvals, they have applied to the Ministry of Environmental Protection for toxic substances. Chemicals import environmental management registration certificate and release notice, import is still allowed.

According to industry sources, domestic chemicals that can replace nonylphenol and are less toxic are being used in the textile industry, but there is no more competitive alternative so far, and nonylphenol is still the most advantageous in terms of price.

Policy At present, China still has not issued a list of specific hazardous chemicals that require industry to phase out. “The central and local governments all pay great attention to the issue of environmental protection, but there are regulatory issues, technical issues, and money issues,” said an industry source who declined to be named.

China's implementation of hazardous chemicals management is not fast. In fact, it was not until 2009 that the Ministry of Environmental Protection established the Chemicals Management Office; in October 2012, the Ministry of Environmental Protection formally adopted the “Dangerous Chemicals Environmental Management Measures (Trial)”, which is China’s first and existing environment. Regulations concerning the management and registration of production and emissions of chemicals hazardous to health and hazardous substances; at the beginning of 2013, China issued the first environmental control plan for hazardous chemicals, namely the “Twelve-Five” Plan for the Prevention and Control of Chemical Environmental Risks issued by the Ministry of Environmental Protection. 》

At present, the current system of China's chemical environment management mainly includes the registration of import and export of toxic chemicals and registration of new chemical substances. However, there are lack of regulations in the aspects of environmental management, release and transfer control of hazardous chemicals, management of key environmental risk sources, and lack of measures to restrict the production and use of chemicals that are highly toxic, difficult to degrade, and highly hazardous to the environment.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology is trying to separate out a standard system related to consumer safety. The Catalogue of Key Chemicals for Dangerous Chemicals Management is being led by the Bureau of Production Supervision and Supervision. This is considered by the industry to be a key step for China to move toward the management of the chemical system environment and eventually eliminate dangerous chemicals.