Taxpayers Cover EU Pharma Wastewater Cleanup

Public Sector Should Pay for Efficient Removal of Pharmaceuticals from Wastewaters

Newswise — Public sector should pay if EU demands efficient removal of pharmaceuticals from wastewaters, according to researchers at the Centre for Antibiotic Research, CARe, at the University of Gothenburg. Their argumentation analysis, published in the journal Public Health Ethics, raises important questions of responsibility.

As the use of medication increases, the problem of pollution and associated environmental impact grows as well. Pharmaceutical residues in urine and faeces are increasingly released into the environment via municipal wastewaters, posing risks to both public health and ecosystems.

Therefore, determining who should manage risks and bear the cost for more advanced wastewater treatment is a critical question. In the European Union, the guiding principle is that the polluter should pay, but researchers at CARe conclude that it would be more reasonable to let costs be borne by water consumers or taxpayers rather than pharmaceutical companies.

The European Union is expected to impose requirements for more efficient removal of pharmaceuticals at all major municipal treatment plants in Europe. Companies manufacturing medicines are often identified as those who should bear the cost, following the “polluter pays” principle. However, researchers at CARe highlight both ethical and practical limitations with this principle.

Who is the True Polluter?

The core of the “polluter pays” principle is simple yet powerful: those causing pollution should bear the financial and administrative responsibility to counteract it. This not only encourages responsible behaviour, but it also seems fair that those contributing to creating a problem also contribute to its solutions. However, a crucial challenge is to identify the true polluter.

Pharmaceuticals are different from most other goods. Supranational systems approve them, states subsidize them, and regional councils and doctors decide on prescriptions before individuals can use them. Both society and individual consumers demand pharmaceuticals and thus contribute to emissions in different ways. Therefore, the justification for placing the burden of potential sewage purification solely on the manufacturer of a medicine can be questioned.

Significant Societal Consequences

If pharmaceutical companies are compelled to bear the costs of advanced sewage treatment, there is a substantial risk that, for purely economic reasons, they would rather refrain from selling medications in a given region. It is often challenging to replace a medication with a specific active substance with another more environmentally friendly one without jeopardizing patient benefit.

“The consequences of sales halts would, in many cases, be devastating for national healthcare. On average, it takes more than a decade for a new medicine to reach the market, and it often costs more than one billion euro. Developing ‘green’ pharmaceuticals is thus not a viable solution, except perhaps in the very long term,” says Professor Joakim Larsson, Centre director of CARe.

Balancing Responsibility and Sustainability

Researchers at CARe propose a hybrid framework to balance responsibility and sustainable pharmaceutical supply and usage. This framework combines the “polluter pays” principle with a “capacity principle,” according to which complex collective problems should be addressed by actors that have the financial and practical capabilities to handle them without causing excessively negative consequences for others. Within the hybrid framework, it matters less who causes the problem, and the focus is on solutions.

Upgrading sewage treatment plants to better remove pharmaceutical residues could then be a viable strategy. The importance of preserving access to clinically important medications justifies distributing the costs of upgrades among water consumers and/or taxpayers.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

1. SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation

   • Target 6.3: By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials.
   • Indicator 6.3.2: Proportion of bodies of water with good ambient water quality.

2. SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

   • Target 12.4: By 2020, achieve the environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes throughout their life cycle, in accordance with agreed international frameworks, and significantly reduce their release to air, water, and soil in order to minimize their adverse impacts on human health and the environment.
   • Indicator 12.4.2: Hazardous waste generated per capita and proportion of hazardous waste treated, disaggregated by treatment type.

Analysis

The article addresses the issue of pharmaceutical residues in wastewater and the associated environmental impact. Based on this, the following SDGs, targets, and indicators can be identified:

1. SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation

The article highlights the need for more efficient removal of pharmaceuticals from wastewaters to improve water quality. This aligns with SDG 6, which aims to ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.

• Target 6.3: By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping, and minimizing the release of hazardous chemicals and materials.
• Indicator 6.3.2: Proportion of bodies of water with good ambient water quality.

The target focuses on improving water quality by reducing pollution, which includes the removal of pharmaceutical residues. The indicator measures the proportion of bodies of water with good ambient water quality, which can be used to assess progress in removing pharmaceuticals from wastewaters.

2. SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

The article discusses the responsibility for managing the risks and costs associated with advanced wastewater treatment for pharmaceutical residues. This relates to SDG 12, which aims to ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.

• Target 12.4: By 2020, achieve the environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes throughout their life cycle, in accordance with agreed international frameworks, and significantly reduce their release to air, water, and soil in order to minimize their adverse impacts on human health and the environment.
• Indicator 12.4.2: Hazardous waste generated per capita and proportion of hazardous waste treated, disaggregated by treatment type.

The target focuses on achieving the environmentally sound management of chemicals and wastes, including pharmaceutical residues in wastewater. The indicator measures the hazardous waste generated per capita and the proportion of hazardous waste treated, which can be used to assess progress in managing pharmaceutical residues in wastewater.

Table: SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

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Source: newswise.com

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