The document discusses strengthening preparedness for cross-border chemical threats in the EU. It emphasizes the importance of early detection and rapid response to chemical events, whether natural, deliberate, or accidental. It summarizes WHO guidelines on core capacities for responding to chemical incidents and lists examples of previous chemical events. Emerging threats mentioned include vaping-related illnesses, chemical risks related to climate change and infrastructure, and environmental impacts of waste management.

1. SHARPJA.EU
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STRENGTHENED INTERNATIONAL HEALTH
REGULATIONS & PREPAREDNESS IN THE EU
Eirian Thomas Work Package 9

2. SHARPJA.EU
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Health Programme of
the European Union
What are the emerging cross-border
chemical threats to be prepared for?
• The strengthening of health security at European and global levels is
of paramount importance. In a world where there is a constant and
rapid movement of people, goods and services there is a need to
strengthen our ability to prevent, detect, and rapidly respond to
public health threats associated with chemicals, whether occurring
naturally or due to deliberate or accidental events.
• Early detection and alerting saves lives. Events involving chemicals
require a rapid public health risk assessment and response. It is
Important to strengthen those mechanism both within MS and
Europe.

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WHO publication: IHR and Chemical
Events
• Core capacities for chemical events
are defined (Annex A)
• Questions concerning chemical
events to assist with monitoring IHR
core capacity (Annex B)
• Also lists examples of previous
chemical events
• Links to a variety of relevant
resources on chemicals

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Strategic Area

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Capacity building
• Access to expertise i.e. maintaining an updated list and roster of
experts and specialized centres
• risk assessment
• exposure modelling
• chemical fate and transport assessment
• biological and environmental monitoring
• (clinical) toxicology /poison centre
• diagnosis and treatment
• health surveillance

6. SHARPJA.EU
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Emerging health threats
• What is happening elsewhere (global perspective) and could that
have an impact within or across Member States
• E-cigarettes/Vaping in US pulmonary disease.
• Chemical threats based on specific risk assessment
• Chemical events - climate change (mitigation measure/extreme
events/infrastructure)
• Environmental impact – waste management (plastics/ electronic
waste) sent to other countries (Responsible management of
chemicals through its life cycle)

7. SHARPJA.EU
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Examples
 Acute incident (Deliberate CBRN), such as Salisbury UK,
March 2018.
 Transboundary pollution (e.g. Hungary toxic sludge affecting
the Danube River).
 Cases of illness associated with imported goods and consumer
products, such as reformulated chemical sealant sprays
 Outbreak of unknown aetiology, Czech methanol outbreak