In September, the GDCh published a statement on its website regarding the ECHA's PFAS restriction proposal, which it had submitted to the ECHA's public consultation that was ongoing at the time. Not all GDCh members were in agreement with the content of this statement, and there was clear criticism from our specialist group in particular. For this reason, the Executive Committee of the Division has written down the points that it felt were neglected in the original opinion. In doing so, we have incorporated many aspects that members of the specialist group have expressed in their critical feedback to us and the GDCh. These additions are supported by the Young Environmental Chemistry & Ecotoxicology Group, our division representative at the EuChemS Division on Chemistry and the Environment, the executive boards of the Chemists in the Civil Service and the Water Chemistry Society and the federal board of the JCF (JungesChemieForum).

The GDCh has documented all critical feedback on this topic here: https://www.gdch.de/service-information/presse-und-oeffentlichkeitsarbeit/stellungnahmen-und-positionspapiere/stellungnahme-und-diskussionen-der-gdch-zu-pfas.html.

Full text: PDF document

Fish kills (due to acute pollution, e.g. as a direct after-effect of the Sandoz accident on the Rhine), mountains of foam on rivers (due to the use of poorly biodegradable surfactants) and dead forest areas (due to acid rain and remobilised heavy metals): in the past, environmental problems were obvious to everyone. Today's problems with chemicals are often hidden; for example, it is not immediately obvious when pesticide or pharmaceutical residues are present in water bodies or when traces of foreign chemicals or nanomaterials are present in food. Full text (Mitt Umweltchem Ökotox 2/ 2013)

An evaluation of an online survey conducted by the professional associations Setac GLB and the GDCh Division, in which more than 70 scientists have participated since November 2010, revealed that ecotoxicological and environmental chemistry proposals are submitted to the German Research Foundation (DFG) by different departments, meaning that the DFG does not have an overview of the total number of proposals in this field. In future, DFG proposals relating to pollutant-related environmental sciences should therefore be labelled "ecotoxicology / environmental chemistry" so that the DFG can clearly identify proposals from this subject area. More full article (Environ Sci Europe)

The Environmental Monitoring Working Group proposes standards for the design and implementation of substance-related monitoring in a position paper. Full text (PDF download)

The specialist group refers to the increasing importance and utilisation of biomass as a renewable raw material for the chemical industry, which is also an important principle of "green chemistry". Full text (PDF download)

Future lines of development for pure and innovation-oriented basic research in the chemical sciences, by Wolfram Koch, GDCH Frankfurt, February 2003. Full text (PDF-Download)

on the position of environmental chemistry and ecotoxicology in the education of chemists from January 1998. Complete article (PDF-Download)