Chemicals included in the category of aquatic toxicity represent a substantial damage to living organisms and human health through aquatic exposure. Effects include among others, damage to the reproductive, immune, endocrine and/or nervous systems, cancer and even death.
The release of any of these substances into waterways must be avoided. In case of accidental spillage cleaning must be carried out using absorbent materials instead of rinsing or pouring jets of water. In the case of substances included in the list of priority hazardous chemicals under EU water policies, elimination or substitution must be recommended according to the principles stated in Directive 2000/60/EC about “the cessation or phasing-out of discharges, emissions and losses of the substances, including an appropriate timetable for doing so. The timetable shall not exceed 20 years after the adoption of these proposals by the European Parliament and the Council”.
To identify aquatic toxic substances, Former Dangerous Substances Directive, known as DSD (67/548/EEC) and the new Regulation 1272/2008 (commonly known as CLP) set pictograms and the following risk phrases ® and hazard statements (H):
Other governmental institutions have set priority lists of this type of substances:
The list includes priority hazardous chemicals a according to the
of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 November 2001 establishing the list of priority substances in the field of water policy and amending
.
The list includes substances dangerous to water according to the
German Federal Ministry of the Environment
that classifies chemicals by their hazard level into:
This list of aquatic toxicants was developed using following sources:
July 2012