“By reducing drug use, they pollute more than cars”, the proposal of the EU Parliament

The pollution you don’t expect. Medicines, an integral part of not only the lives of so many patients, but also of a growing sector of the economy, are responsible for severe damage to ecosystems, as they cannot be effectively filtered by treatment plants of sewage water. In other words, the excrements of those who have ingested a drug pollute underground aquifers with negative consequences for the environment, but also for humans. This process reduces their future effectiveness, for example by causing the emergence of antimicrobial resistance.

According to one study from the Journal of Cleaner Production, emissions from the pharmaceutical industry are 55% higher than those from the automotive industry. Estimates that convinced the European Medicines Agency (Ema) to to review guidelines for the environmental risk assessment of medicinal products, with the introduction, for example, of the term “endocrine active substances”, to include all compounds that affect development or reproduction. Experts and legislators have known about the phenomenon for years, but until now it has been difficult to intervene because it is necessary to take into account not only the health of patients, but also the strong economic interests behind the pharmaceutical industry. For some years now, Italy has been the leading pharmaceutical powerhouse in production in the EU, compared to Germany.

A text by the European Parliament, drawn up with the aim of tackling the problem, received the approval of the House today with 671 votes in favor, 15 against and 10 abstentions. In the report, MEPs deplore the serious delay in the fight against contamination in the pharmaceutical sector and antimicrobial resistance. The solution proposed by MEPs is to target the use, or perhaps it would be better to say the abuse, of prescription drugs, a phenomenon that mainly affects older people. MEPs also call for a more careful use of medicines, the development of greener production and better waste management in the EU.

MEPs must take action to limit the growing overall per capita consumption of medicines in the EU and are calling on countries to share best practices to reduce the preventive use of antibiotics and eliminate unused medicines. Physicians and veterinarians are also encouraged to provide information on proper disposal. Finally, the text underlines the need for further development of “greener medicines”, equally effective for patients but less harmful to the environment. In this context, the goal is to make them more biodegradable without compromising their effectiveness.