Taxpayers should foot the bill if EU demands efficient removal of pharmaceuticals from wastewaters
Oct 06, 2023
Public sector should pay if EU demands efficient removal of pharmaceuticals from wastewaters, according to researchers at the Centre for Antibiotic Research, CARe, at the University of Gothenburg. Their argumentation analysis, published in the journal Public Health Ethics, raises important questions of responsibility.
As the use of medication increases, the problem of pollution and associated environmental impact grows as well. Pharmaceutical residues in urine and faeces are increasingly released into the environment via municipal wastewaters, posing risks to both public health and ecosystems. Therefore, determining who should manage risks and bear the cost for more advanced wastewater treatment is a critical question.
In the European Union, the guiding principle is that the polluter should pay, but researchers at CARe conclude that it would be more reasonable to let costs be borne by water consumers or taxpayers rather than pharmaceutical companies. The European Union is expected to impose requirements for more efficient removal of pharmaceuticals at all major municipal treatment plants in Europe.
Companies manufacturing medicines are often identified as those who should bear the cost, following the “polluter pays” principle. However, researchers at CARe highlight both ethical and practical limitations with this principle.
Who is the true polluter?
The core of the “polluter pays” principle is simple yet powerful: those causing pollution should bear the financial and administrative responsibility to counteract it. This not only encourages responsible behaviour, but it also seems fair that those contributing to creating a problem also contribute to its solutions. However, a crucial challenge is to identify the true polluter.
Pharmaceuticals are different from most other goods. Supranational systems approve them, states subsidize them, and regional councils and doctors decide on prescriptions before individuals can use them. Both society and individual consumers demand pharmaceuticals and thus contribute to emissions in different ways. Therefore, the justification for placing the burden of potential sewage purification solely on the manufacturer of a medicine can be questioned.
Significant societal consequences
If pharmaceutical companies are compelled to bear the costs of advanced sewage treatment, there is a substantial risk that, for purely economic reasons, they would rather refrain from selling medications in a given region.
It is often challenging to replace a medication with a specific active substance with another more environmentally friendly one without jeopardizing patient benefit. “The consequences of sales halts would, in many cases, be devastating for national healthcare.
On average, it takes more than a decade for a new medicine to reach the market, and it often costs more than one billion euro. Developing ‘green’ pharmaceuticals is thus not a viable solution, except perhaps in the very long term,” says Professor Joakim Larsson, Centre director of CARe.
Balancing responsibility and sustainability
Researchers at CARe propose a hybrid framework to balance responsibility and sustainable pharmaceutical supply and usage. This framework combines the “polluter pays” principle with a “capacity principle,” according to which complex collective problems should be addressed by actors that have the financial and practical capabilities to handle them without causing excessively negative consequences for others.
Within the hybrid framework, it matters less who causes the problem, and the focus is on solutions. Upgrading sewage treatment plants to better remove pharmaceutical residues could then be a viable strategy. The importance of preserving access to clinically important medications justifies distributing the costs of upgrades among water consumers and/or taxpayers.
More News and Articles
Apr 26, 2024
News
Bothar’s cutting head innovation
The trenchless industry in Australia continues to grow and the need to provide customised solutions becomes vital for a leading subsurface contractor.
Recognising the need for advanced solutions to meet the growing …
Apr 24, 2024
News
Sustainable drainage solutions: German Start-up transforms urban water management.
Germany boasts a well-established infrastructure for managing rainwater and wastewater, yet many developing countries lack such systems. Addressing this gap, …
Apr 22, 2024
News
HDD tooling that gets the job done
Horizontal directional drilling is a dynamic process that constantly changes and adapts to suit a range of applications across utilities and infrastructure. Operators looking to get the most from their equipment …
Apr 19, 2024
News
WATCH: Overnight with SAERTEX-LINER H20 in São Paulo
Available through Pipe Core, high-quality liner SAERTEX-LINER H20 performed under pressure in São Paulo, Brazil.
Maintaining aging potable water pipe infrastructure is a constant challenge …
Apr 17, 2024
News
Immersive media provides wastewater experience in Denmark
An immersive media experience (IMX) may not be what most people want when they think about industrial wastewater, but that is exactly what visitors can expect when they visit a new installation …
Apr 15, 2024
News
Spotlight on gender diversity at Pipe Core
Since founding in 2008, Pipe Core’s team has grown across all areas of the business and is now in a position where there are more females than males across the organisation. Research published in Harvard …
Apr 12, 2024
News
New Wave of Startups Scale Innovation to Solve Global Water Challenges
Innovators from Around the World Join Xylem’s 2024 Accelerator Program to Deploy Breakthrough Innovations for Utilities and Industrial Users of Water
A new group of startups …
Apr 08, 2024
News
Integrated sustainable electricity and clean drinking water systems
Altitude Water and New Use Energy Solutions have partnered to create integrated, mobile solar-plus-water generation systems that produce sustainable electricity and clean drinking …
Apr 05, 2024
News
How to Evaluate Hydraulic Fracture Risk in HDD Design
The design of horizontal directional drill (HDD) installations often requires an evaluation of the potential for hydraulic fracture of the soil layers through which an HDD passes. Evaluating …
Apr 02, 2024
News
Historic Project Linking Rome and Vatican City Uses Advanced Technology and Local Knowledge to Keep Water Flowing
Relocation of Major Sewer Infrastructure Enables Construction of Pedestrian Link for 35 Million Visitors to the 2025 Jubilee
Water …
Mar 27, 2024
News
USU Study Looks at Water Main Break Rates in the U.S. and Canada
Report Highlights Correlation Between Material and Diameter
Utah State University (USU) has published new research on water main breaks in the United States and Canada, examining …
Mar 26, 2024
News
Update BE-21: New Material in Course and Modules on Trenchless Pipe Installation
Online training on the topic of pipeline installation in civil engineering: Trenchless technology for underground drainage construction can be a resource-efficient, …
Contact
Oxford Academic
Erik Malmqvist
Senior lecturer in practical philosophy at the Univeristy of Gothenburg
Wellington Square
OX1 2JD Oxford
United Kingdom
Phone:
+46 31 786 52 56