In April 2023, the U.S. organisation Beyond Plastics published a report titled The Perils of PVC Plastic Pipes. The report alleges that PVC pipes for drinking water are unsafe, from production to use to disposal. As many communities in the US are currently replacing old pipes, the NGO calls for the use of copper pipes rather than PVC pipes.
The PVC4Pipes paper documents that this recommendation is based on outdated and demonstrably misleading information about PVC, especially in view of the progress that has been achieved in Europe, where a combination of strict regulation and voluntary action has led to PVC being used safely and increasingly sustainably.
If utilities follow the advice from Beyond Plastics, it may have dire consequences for human health and the environment.
