ICER 2023: Circular targets remain out of reach The Netherlands aims to have a fully circular economy by 2050 and halve its use of raw materials by 2030. In recent years, however, little progress has been made in either regard.
Urgent need for more research into environmental effects of microplastics Additional solutions are urgently needed to limit emissions of microplastics into the environment. Growing quantities of microplastics (particles of 5 mm or less) are entering our living environment every day.
Circular economy: plastics recycling from end-of-life vehicles could be four times higher At present, 85% of plastics from end-of-life vehicles is still incinerated. Only 15% of plastics is reused as a raw material. A survey conducted by RIVM has revealed possibilities to expand recovery of these plastics fourfold by 2030.
Proposed European PFAS ban officially submitted The Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Norway today took the first formal step towards a European ban on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) by jointly submitting a restriction proposal to the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA).
More than two million invitations to get vaccinated against HPV in 2023 In early 2023, 1.3 million young adults will receive an invitation to get vaccinated against the human papillomavirus (HPV). This group comprises around 900,000 men and 400,000 women between the ages of 19 and 27.
At least 87% of people over 65 vaccinated at least once: high turnout, few regional differences Four months after the launch of the vaccination campaign, at least 87% of people over 65 in the Netherlands have been vaccinated against COVID-19 at least once.
Quality assessment of SARS-CoV-2 antigen test diagnostics: good performance at public test sites in the Netherlands In their role as WHO reference laboratories, RIVM and Erasmus UMC conducted a study on the quality of SARS-CoV-2 antigen diagnostics in the Netherlands.
Long-term symptoms more common after Lyme disease More than a quarter of people with Lyme disease continue to have long-term symptoms that lead to limitations in daily life even after treatment.
RIVM updates guidelines for AstraZeneca interval As of 21 May, RIVM updated the guidelines for the interval between two doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine. The interval can now be between 6 and 14 weeks.
Social well-being is improving, compliance with coronavirus measures remains important With the recent easing of the coronavirus measures, social contact and well-being are improving again. Compliance with most measures remains stable for now (such as getting tested by the GGD and avoiding crowds) or is decreasing very gradually.