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Global Regulations on Emerging Contaminants
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This review surveys global regulations on emerging contaminants in water and soils, finding that international and national frameworks are beginning to address microplastics, PFAS, and pharmaceuticals but that regulatory coverage remains incomplete and enforcement inconsistent across jurisdictions.
Given that emerging contaminants have been widely detected in water and soils and pose serious threats to the environment and human health, the international community and many countries have started to establish or revise relevant laws and regulations to standardize their use and production and to strictly limit their concentrations in those environmental media. This chapter provides an overview of the global regulations on emerging contaminants, with a focus on the management and control measures implemented by international conventions, regional frameworks, and national regulations. The Stockholm Convention, EU REACH regulation, and the U.S. EPA regulations are highlighted as key international frameworks addressing those emerging persistent organic pollutants. The chapter also examines the specific limit values and remediation standards for various types of emerging contaminants, such as perfluorinated compounds, flame retardants, antibiotics, microplastics, and endocrine-disrupting chemicals in water and soil. Currently, there are significant gaps in the standards and regulations for emerging contaminants, particularly for antibiotics and microplastics. Therefore, it is crucial to amend and enhance environmental regulations in the future to ensure that the risks posed by these emerging pollutants will be effectively mitigated.
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