Eliminating Hazardous Chemicals from Fashion and Construction Value Chains

Fashion and construction are among the top three economic sectors that contribute to pollution, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, land degradation, water pollution and threats to biodiversity.  The continued presence of hazardous chemicals in products is a barrier to circular economy initiatives as those products cannot be recycled and are therefore incompatible with a circular economy model. The pollution and resource scarcity implications of the fashion and construction global value chains are less clearly understood than their climate and nature impacts limiting action and investment to address those impacts.

The Supply Chains Integrated Program aims to address environmental degradation and focuses on transforming these supply chains to be green, achieve zero pollution and zero waste, integrate nature-based solutions, and become carbon neutral. The IP is being implemented through a Global Coordination Project and 8 country projects in, Cambodia, Trinidad & Tobago, Pakistan, Ecuador, Peru, Mongolia, Costa Rica, India. This is taking place through strong inter-agency cooperation between UNEP, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and Food and Agriculture Organization on the United Nations (FAO)