Report from the Final Conference & Exhibition
Held on 27-28th April in Brussels, the Final Conference & Exhibition converged around the topic of "Science and policy for a healthy future." In the course of two days, experts presented results of the project and held discussions on the role of human biomonitoring for chemical policy-making.
The exhibition then, aptly named We live in a chemical world, covered the main conclusions of the project, such as that Europeans are exposed to high levels of hazardous chemical substances.
Through a network of laboratories, the project collected comparable and comprehensive data on the exposure of the EU population to priority chemicals. Urine and/or blood samples from more than 13,000 European citizens from 28 countries were tested. Based on the interpretation of the data, HBM4EU devised recommendations for policymakers, contributing to measuring progress under the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability and the Zero Pollution Agenda, amongst other policy actions, effectively bridging science and policy.
“We need a sustainable Human Biomonitoring system for Europe to understand to what extent we are exposed to hazardous chemicals, which chemicals impact health, and how we can protect ourselves”
On the occasion of the conference, participants received a physical copy of an HBM4EU newspaper containing an overview of the project, numerous articles dedicated to the priority substances as well as expert quotes and comments. We are pleased to announce that a digital version is now available. Click here to access it.
Photos & videos from the event are coming soon. In the meantime, read ChemTrust’s summary of the event and key takeaways or watch the videos as featured on the exhibition screens below!
- Priority substances
- Exposure levels and exceedance values
- Health outcomes
- Policy messages
- Time trends – Phthalates
- Peer-reviewed publications
- Societal concern
- Interviews
Disclaimer
The HBM4EU project was launched in 2016 with the aim of improving the collective understanding of human exposure to hazardous chemicals and developing HBM as an exposure assessment method. The project had €74m in funding and jointly implemented by 120 partners from 28 participating countries – 24 EU member states plus Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Israel and the European Environment Agency. One of its aims was to ensure the sustainability of HBM in the EU beyond 2021. The project ended in June 2022. The website will not be updated any longer, except the page on peer reviewed publications, but will be online until 2032.
