A/HRC/30/40 stakeholders to contribute their views and perspectives and is grateful for all the contributions.7 6. The present report focuses on the human rights implications of information throughout the life cycle of hazardous substances and wastes. It discusses the types of information that are required to understand these substances better in order to prevent and mitigate their impact in the realization of human rights. In addition, it aims at identifying challenges and obstacles to the realization of the right to information in this context. First, the report introduces the right to information from an international human rights law perspective and its relevance throughout the life cycle of hazardous substances, including a summary of information gaps. Secondly, it provides an analysis of the duties of States to realize the right to information on hazardous substances and wastes, followed by a description of the corollary responsibilities of businesses. The present report concludes with a summary and recommendations for stakeholders. II. Importance of information on hazardous substances and wastes 7. Information is critical to the enjoyment of human rights and fundamental to good governance. Information about hazardous substances is essential to prevent risks, mitigate harms, conduct focused research on safer alternatives, provide treatment and remedy, and ensure transparency, participation and consent in decision- and policymaking. 8. Information from the scientific community continues to unearth a broad range of adverse health impacts that are linked to various hazardous substances. For example, research shows that daughters of women with above-average levels of one hazardous substance during pregnancy have a fourfold increase in the risk of breast cancer later in life.8 It has been estimated that 62 per cent of the total production of industrial substances are toxic.9 The ongoing human exposure to toxic and otherwise hazardous chemicals is estimated to carry tremendous costs for public resources, public health and society at large.10 However, the actual extent of the impacts of hazardous substances remains largely unknown. A. Global challenge of information on substances and wastes 9. Securing adequate information on the risks of hazardous substances and wastes has been an incessant global challenge. In 1992, the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development identified two major problems linked to hazardous substances: (a) the lack of sufficient scientific information for the assessment of risks on a great number of substances; and (b) the lack of resources for the assessment of chemicals where information is available.11 In 2001, the European Commission reiterated that the lack 7 8 9 10 11 4 All the submissions received are available from www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Environment/ ToxicWastes/Pages/SubmissionsRightInformation.aspx. Barbara Cohn and others, “DDT exposure in utero and breast cancer”, Journal of Clinical Encocrinology and Metabolism (16 June 2015). Joint EEA-JRC report (see footnote 6 above), p. 21. See UNEP, Costs of Inaction on the Sound Management of Chemicals (2013). United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, Agenda 21, chap. 19 (1992).