ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the movement of toxic harms across increasingly porous borders. Advancing technology, the dissolving of trade barriers and the exponential increase in the international flow of goods, services and information mean that the potential for harm is increasingly global. Transferences of harm occur in a number of different ways. Examples include the movement of substances from one location to another, the relocation of specific activities from one region to another, the flow of toxins along global supply chains (diethylene glycol (DEG)), and the forced migration. The chapter illustrates different forms of harm and modes of transference. The case examples in the chapter also illustrates the victimisation of vulnerable groups within the community of consumers, including the poor in developing and developed countries, the elderly, surviving victims of toxic harms, and those with existing medical conditions. Children stand out most starkly as being over-represented, exposed to toxins in breast milk, infant formula, teething mixture, medicine, bibs, toys and jewellery.
