Letter from the FRAM Management Team
Dear all,
We initially discussed whether we should indeed produce this issue at this point in time, while we all struggle to navigate the Corona-induced anxiety and changes in our daily lives. In the end, we decided to go forward and, hopefully, the newsletter provides a small dose of urgently needed normalcy.
We also need to remember that the world behind Covid-19 still continues to spin. Sweden, for example, has just past its country overshoot day on the 2nd of April, which is the day in which all the earth's annual resources would have been completely spent, if everybody would use as many resources as the average Swede. Obviously, there are also other curves that we urgently need to flatten.
Unintentional exposure to toxic chemicals, e.g. to immunosuppressive perfluorinated compounds such as PFOA and PFOS, are taking a toll on our health - which in turn impacts our ability to cope with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. On the other hand, chemical disinfectants such as quaternary ammonium compounds are absolutely vital to disinfect for example hard surfaces in and around hospitals.
Then again, the very same chemicals become a public health hazard if indiscriminately sprayed in public places or even onto people. These and other examples go a long way to show that, even in times of Corona, we need to continue to work towards sound and science-driven chemical risk assessment and management.
Best wishes and stay safe!
Thomas Backhaus, Jessica Coria and Åsa Arrhenius
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