We recently held an Instagram Live with Chloe Topping, Assistant Campaigner at Chem Trust – an organisation whose mission is to ‘protect humans and wildlife from harmful chemicals’. She discussed the work of the organisation in more detail, how they advocate for human health and wildlife with politicians and decision makers, and how she became interested in this topic within the environmental movement.
Chemical pollution is a not particularly well-understood topic, and doesn’t get the same airtime as sewage or other environmental issues, so we asked Chem Trust to share some of their fave books, movies and podcasts that would give us a better understanding of this mega complex issue. If you’re keen to get involved in a campaign to fight against chemical pollution, check out our Not So Freshwater campaign, and get in touch if you’d like to join us – all skill sets are required, whether you’re an accountant, an artist, or just appreciate a nice patch of moss.
Movies
Dark Waters
Available to rent on Amazon Prime, YouTube, Apple TV, Google Play
The Hollywood film ‘Dark Waters’, starring actor Mark Ruffalo, tells the real-life story of Rob Bilott, the lawyer who took on chemical giant DuPont after discovering that the company was polluting drinking water with the harmful PFAS chemical, PFOA. Read more about the film in Chem Trust’s FAQ
The PFAS cover-up
Zembla, a Dutch television documentary programme, uncovers hundreds of internal company documents revealing how much chemicals manufacturers DuPont and 3M knew about the dangers of PFAS.
Books
Silent Spring, by Rachel Carson
In her ground-breaking 1962 book Silent Spring, the American scientist Rachel Carson highlights the links between the use of the pesticide DDT and a reduction in populations of birds of prey.
Count Down, by Dr Shanna Swan
This book by Dr Shanna Swan, written with Stacey Colino, outlines the impact of environmental exposures, including endocrine-disrupting chemicals, on our fertility and reproductive health.
Go Toxic Free, by Anna Turns
In her 2022 book, Anna Turns takes a look at common household products and outlines how we can make changes to our lifestyles to reduce our ‘chemical footprint’ and improve our health.
Podcasts
‘What are forever chemicals’ and why are they causing alarm?
The Guardian speaks to environmental journalist Rachel Salvidge about PFAS, chemicals which have been found at high levels at thousands of sites across the UK and Europe. Rachel explains what they are, how harmful they can be and what can mitigate their effects.
‘What is chemical pollution?’ webinar
Don’t forget to register for our webinar, ‘What is chemical pollution’, on Thursday 27th of February at 6PM! During this free online webinar, UK Youth for Nature will sit down with charities CHEM Trust and Breast Cancer UK. With a focus on PFAS chemicals (you may have heard of them by their nickname, the ‘forever chemicals’), we will discuss how chemical pollution is impacting our health and nature. We will also discuss what we, as citizens, can do to protect current and future generations of people and wildlife. It’s totally free to attend 🙂
