Untersuchung über die Auswirkungen geplanter gesetzlicher Beschränkungen auf die Verwendung, Verbreitung und Substitution von Cadmium in Produkten. Umweltforschungsplan des Bundesministers für Umwelt, Naturschutz und Reaktorsicherheit. Produktbezogener Immissionsschutz. Forschungsbericht Nr. 104 08 320

The EC-directive 91/338/EWG puts a ban on cadmium for special applications.In the FRG, for all applications included in that directive cadmium is already substituted today. The substitution of cadmium stbilizers will be completed in the near future. The use of cadmium for corrosion protection has been also greatly diminished. Only the substitution of cadmium pigments in red and yellow "high engineering plastics" and keramic glazes cannot be realized presently. The nickel/hydrogen accumulator, which is available now, and the lithium accumulator will probably cut back the growing consumption rate of cadmium for sealed nickel/cadmium cells. There are sufficiently large capacities for the recycling of nickel/cadmium accumulators available but the number of accumulators returned is still low. Although the EC-directive 91/157 allows a deposit on batteries containing environmentally hazardous substances, its introduction is not currently planned. Cadmium polluted zinc, lead and copper and esp ecially phosphate fertilizers are responsible for a considerable amount of cadmium input into the environment. A threshold limit for cadmium in phosphate fertilizers for the entire EC is not to be expected in the near future.