Lack of technically sound alternatives is often seen as the bottleneck in the transition towards a toxic free world. This is a misconception, according to an article by Swedish businesses, environmental organisations, and academics published in Sweden's largest financial newspaper. They urge the Swedish Government to introduce regulations making it profitable to replace hazardous chemicals with alternative solutions.
According to the authors of the article, it is the established industry, which has invested huge amounts into old solutions, that sets the rules of the market game. This acts as a block to best available technology and makes it difficult for new entrepreneurs to enter the market, which legislators then incorrectly interpret as an absence of alternatives.
In Sweden a carbon dioxide tax is used to reach climate targets and emissions limits, but no equivalent tax tool is used in the case of hazardous chemicals. As such, strong economic incentives for companies to find safer solutions are missing.
