On April 30, 2026, the Official Journal of the European Union officially published Regulation (EU) 2026/878. The regulation specifies that the European Union will submit a proposal to the Secretariat of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants on behalf of its member states, recommending the inclusion of tetrabromobisphenol A (TBPH) in Annex A (the elimination list) of the convention. This means TBPH is likely to become one of the next key persistent organic pollutants (POPs) to be globally phased out.
1. Background:
TBPH must be translated as "foam" TBPH is a brominated flame retardant primarily used in plastic and rubber products, wires and cables, electronic and electrical enclosures, polyurethane foam, automotive components, and more. According to Article 57(e)(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and the Council, the European Union has classified it as a substance of very high concern due to its extreme persistence and bioaccumulation potential.
Extensive scientific research data indicates that TBPH not only exhibits clear toxicity (posing potential hazards to the human endocrine and reproductive systems, with some studies suggesting possible carcinogenicity), but also possesses long-range migration capabilities. The presence of this substance has been detected in soil, water, and organisms in remote areas such as polar and high-altitude regions far from human activity, demonstrating its global contamination scope. This aligns with the criteria for persistent organic pollutants (POPs) outlined in Annex D of the Stockholm Convention, thus it is explicitly classified as a POP requiring coordinated global management.
Based on the aforementioned characteristics and potential environmental and health risks, the European Union submitted a proposal to the Secretariat of the Convention, recommending the inclusion of TBPH in Annex A to the Convention to reduce the global emissions of this substance.
Key planning milestones for TBPH inclusion in Appendix A of the Convention:
April 2026 — EU Regulation (EU) 2026/878 officially comes into effect, with the proposal submitted to the Convention Secretariat;
In October 2026, the Persistent Organic Pollutants Review Committee (POPRC) will begin reviewing the nomination dossier for TBPH;
The final decision on whether to formally include TBPH in Annex A will be made at the earliest at the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Stockholm Convention in 2029.
