28 OPINION
ESG | JANUARY-FEBRUARY , 2023
An emerging ecological threat
The government at all levels ( federal , State , local ) should uncompromisingly enforce legislation and regulations on the pharmaceutical industries
BY JASON LOH AND JACHINTHA JOYCE
WHILST not as well-publicised as the other pollutants , pharmaceutical or drug pollution is rapidly becoming a policy concern for their degrading and toxifying impact on the environment , mainly via water sources , primarily freshwater ( rivers , lakes , water catchments ), as “ aquatic micropollutants ”.
For example , according to the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies , “[ p ] harmaceutical pollution in freshwater [ among others ] is largely unstudied ”.
Covid-19 has provided the impetus and catalyst for further acceleration in the growth of pharmaceutical industries leading to high-risk pollution across the world ( see , e . g ., “ A critical review on the environmental presence of pharmaceutical drugs tested for the Covid-19 treatment ”).
Worldwide revenue of the pharmaceutical industry reached US $ 1.4 trillion in 2021 , according to ResearchandMarkets . com ( see “ Analysing the US $ 1.4 Trillion Global Pharmaceutical Industry 2022 ”, Business Wire , Nov 30 , 2022 ).
But the tide is shifting and the “ crustal displacement ” in the policy discourse is that there ’ s been growing awareness and consciousness regarding the ecological impact of pharmaceutical and what ’ s known as active pharmaceutical ingredients ’ ( API ) disposal , discharge and release over the years now . It is due to the global reconnaissance and findings precipitated by the off-shoring , outsourcing , and relocation of the pharmaceutical industries ’ production networks to the so-called “ Third World ” countries .
APIs are any substances or compounds that ’ s designed to be utilised in the production of a pharmaceutical dosage form and , when so used , becomes an active component thereof that helps to diagnose , treat or prevent the different diseases ( World Health Organisation / WHO Technical Report Series No . 970,2012 , as quoted by the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency / NPRA , Ministry of Health / MOH , Malaysia ).
In addition to freshwater sources , APIs and finished pharmaceutical products ( FPPs ) infiltrate / enter the environment via ocean , underground water , and landfills .
COUNTER ELEMENTS IN PRODUCTS
Due to the nature of the role that they play , wastewater and sewage treatment plants ( STPs ) host pharmaceutical pollutants via urine , faeces and wastes from body wash ( see , “ A critical review on the environmental presence of pharmaceutical drugs tested for the Covid-19 treatment ”, Process Safety and Environmental Protection , Vol . 152 , August 2021 ).
Besides medical and drug products , personal care products ( PCPs ) – such as toothpaste and shampoos – are counterpart elements that contribute to pharmaceutical pollution .
The Fourth Session of the International Conference on Chemicals Management ( ICCM 4 ) nominated what ’ s termed as “ environmentally persistent pharmaceutical products ” ( EPPP ) – which contain APIs – as an emerging policy issue in 2015 . These pollutants are also classified as contaminants of emerging concern ( CECs ).
Even where the concentration is low , APIs / EPPPs / CECs can cause an inimical effect on living organisms and don ’ t degrade easily , and persist for longer periods in the environment due to their stable structure (“ Pharmaceutical wastewater as Emerging Contaminants ( EC ): Treatment technologies , impact on the environment and human health ”, Energy Nexus , Volume 6 , June 2022 ).
Traces of pharmaceutical components from antidepressants , antibiotics , painkillers and birth control pills are some of the common pollutants found in freshwater sources , and considered as the leading environmentally dangerous drugs ( see , “ Drugs flushed into the environment could be cause of wildlife decline , The Guardian , October 13 , 2014 ).
Additionally , pharmaceutical pollution are highly associated with risks in human and aquatic organisms ’ endocrine ( or hormonal ) system – as endocrine disrupting chemicals ( EDCs ).
Endocrine systems release hormones into the bloodstreams of humans and animals , which is critical in controlling mood , physical growth and development , energy level , reproductive capacity , etc .
For instance , based on a study , birth control pills have a high level of progestogens to which frogs are very sensitive . Female tadpoles that inhabit the polluted areas are subjected to reproduction issues resulting from infertility ( see , “ Sterility in frogs caused by environmental pharmaceutical progestogens , study finds ”, Science Daily , February 16 , 2011 ).
Globally , 25 per cent of the rivers are impacted . This includes urban and remote areas ( see , “ 25 per cent of global rivers have significant pharmaceutical pollution ”, Open Access Government , Feb 17 , 2022 ).
Developing and less developing countries are more exposed ( to pharmaceutical pollution ) – reflecting the broader disparities arising from the North-South divide .
STRONG CORRELATIONS
A study published by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science / PNAS – “ Pharmaceutical Pollution of the World ’ s Rivers ” ( Feb 14 , 2022 ) – shows that parts of South America , sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia are highly rated pharmaceutical pollutant hubs (“ Global study finds the extent of pharmaceutical pollution in the world ’ s rivers ”, University of York , 2022 ).
The study “ monitored 1,052 sampling sites along 258 rivers in 104 countries of all continents , thus representing the pharmaceutical fingerprint of 471.4 million people ” to “ measure the presence of 61 pharmaceuticals ’.
In turn , these pharmaceuticals such as carbamazepine ( a highly teratogenic substance , i . e ., causing congenital disorders in a developing embryo or foetus and life-threatening allergic reactions such as Stevens-Johnson Syndrome / SJS ) or toxic epidermal necrolysis / TEN ), metformin and caffeine [ as the three most frequently detected APIs ]”.