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GENEVA-- Swine flu isn't the only danger lurking in the shadows these days. The International Conference on Chemicals Management, meeting in Geneva this week, wants you to be aware of a multitude of potentially lethal substances that may be lurking in your own living room. Some 200 international conventions concerning chemical use have been signed since the early 20th Century. This week's meeting, which is being attended by 140 governments, 60 NGOs, 20 international organizations, and the CEOs of eight major chemical companies, intends to start the process of establishing order out of chaos and to begin setting universal standards that will put everyone on the same footing, and hopefully provide a basis for universal protection.

A wide range of new threats, ranging from experimental nano technologies to exotic chemicals used in the microprocessors in cell phones and lap top computers have the potential to be equally lethal. "They are in everything around us," says Matthew Gubb, a coordinator at the secretariat of the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM), which is hosting the Geneva conference.

Regulating chemicals  is particularly important for the emerging markets, which are most likely to continue using dangerous chemicals that the developed world has long since put aside. Children in the developing world are particularly vulnerable, but in this new globalized economy dangerous substances can show up almost anywhere. That cuddly teddy bear that you buy for your kid may boast an American brand, but the components that went into making it could just as easily come from China, Mexico or any of a score of emerging economies, each with its own view of what constitutes safety.  The recent panic over lead paint in toys manufactured in China is just one example.  In this new world, other people's standards are your business.

"The fact is that when you buy a toy in a store, you have no idea of where its materials came from," says Alexandra Caterbrow, the policy officer for chemicals and health for Women in Europe for a Common Future, an NGO that is lobbying for tighter controls and more transparency in labeling at the conference.  Caterbrow points out that the negative effects from some of these chemicals can range from increased autism in children to damage to the endocrine system. The problem, she says, is that when restrictions are established, exceptions usually follow, and often these are based on factors that have nothing to do with scientific evidence.

The newer nanotechnologies, which rely on manufactured molecule-sized particles that may be only a 50,000th the width of a human hair, pose new threats.  Nano technology promises miraculous breakthroughs from portable filters for drinking water to crystals that can remove arsenic contamination from wells, or even manufacture clothes that repel dirt. A somewhat frivolous, but impressive example of the potential is a self-cleaning necktie, which Chinese manufacturers proudly presented to former president George W. Bush.  But without extensive and fairly elaborate testing it is not yet clear that nano technologies won't also produce unintended side effects, especially if the countries experimenting with them lack the sophisticated controls that have gradually evolved in more developed countries.  

"By their very size and physical properties, there is a potential to enter the body and harm organs," says Leslie Onyon,  who is seconded from the World Health Organization to SAICM.  "The challenge, "says Onyon,"is to be aware of these chemicals and to know which products they are in."

The exotic chemicals that go into electronic circuits are another cause for concern. There are roughly 1.5 billion laptops in the world today, and that number is expected to double shortly. While contaminated waste dumps can be a problem, there is also a danger that hazardous chemicals in older laptops are being recycled into newer ones, prolonging the danger.

The dangers from lead--particularly in aging paint are the focus of a major part of the discussions. Most of us know about the obvious dangers from lead poisoning, which can cause irreversible brain damage in children and adults, but what is less known is that the danger is increasing as lead paint applied before controls were imposed in the 1980s ages dangerously. 

About half the homes built in the US after 1960 used lead-based paint, which  is now turning into a chemical time bomb.  The problem is the fine, barely perceptible dust that filters into the air as the paint gradually decays.  Even opening a window lined with lead paint can be hazardous. A dust mask doesn't help and ordinary vacuum cleaners-any not equipped with a hepa filter-- simply spread the dust in the air. According to the US Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry roughly one child out of six has elevated levels of lead that can reduce intelligence. The only way to know if your child is really at risk or not  is a blood test.

Transparency and education are crucial factors in deciding what materials to use in manufacturing.  While chemical industries have a financial interest in selling the products they have already developed, it is often possible to substitute a safe substance for a dangerous one at no real increase in cost. The trick is to make sure that both the chemical companies and the public know that the alternatives are there.  Since some of the combinations of materials are extremely complex, SAICM, which is supported both by the United nations Environmental Program and by the World Health Organization, aims at creating partnerships which will bring national governments, the private sector and NGOs together to share information and viewpoints, and then to count on common sense and national responsibility to do the right thing.  In the meantime, it is up to the consumer to be alert and stay informed