Interior Design Declares supports a new consensus on reconciling fire safety with the environmental and health impacts of chemical flame retardants

Flame retardants are chemical substances that are intended to mitigate the fire safety risks posed by a range of goods including furniture, electronics and building insulation.

However there are growing concerns about the potential harm flame retardants pose to human health and the environment. In response to these concerns a roundtable of experts was convened by the UKRI Six Clean Air Strategic Priorities Fund programme. The meeting resulted in a consensus statement that summarises the issues around the use of flame retardants, laying out a series of policy recommendations that should lead to more effective fire safety measures and reduce the human and environmental health risks posed by these potentially toxic chemicals.

The statement calls on the government to, amongst other things, minimise the need for chemical fire retardants, improve governance of standards and promote funding for human environmental health research. You can read the full consensus paper here

Interior Design Declares is part of the Built Environment Declares declaration. The group formed two years ago to demand collective action to confront the climate and biodiversity emergencies.