Bielefeld, Germany Lifts Ban on PVC Products

In what the plastics industry is calling a landmark decision, the German town of Bielefeld has lifted its seven-year-old prohibition on PVC products in publicly funded buildings. According to

Plastics News, the move came “after a re-evaluation of the products, taking into account their long life expectancies, industry recycling programs, and swing away from cadmium stabilizers.” At the same time a policy advisory group in Sweden has recom­mended a phase-out of many PVC products. The group is concerned about additives used in PVC, primarily plasticizers in flexible products.