implementREACH

What is REACH ?

REACH is a new European Community Regulation on chemicals and their safe use (EC 1907/2006). It deals with the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemical substances. The new law entered into force on 1 June 2007.

The aim of REACH is to improve the protection of human health and the environment through the better and earlier identification of the intrinsic properties of chemical substances.

The REACH Regulation gives greater responsibility to industry to manage the risks from chemicals and to provide safety information on the substances. Manufacturers and importers will be required to gather information on the properties of their chemical substances, which will allow their safe handling, and to register the information in a central database run by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) in Helsinki.

The Regulation also calls for the progressive substitution of the most dangerous chemicals when suitable alternatives have been identified. REACH provisions will be phased-in over 11 years.

Does REACH affect me ?

Do you know what REACH means for your products and your company? You should find out your duties under REACH if:

  • You manufacture or import chemical substances or mixtures of chemical substances (preparations).
  • You produce or import articles (for example construction materials, electronic components, toys or vehicles) which contain substances included in a list of substances of very high concern or which are released during their use.
  • You process chemicals or you formulate preparations for end use (for example cleaning products, paints or motor oils) or you use these formulated products professionally. In this case you are a downstream user.

Are all chemicals or products concerned ?

Yes, but there are exemptions from certain parts of the legislation, for example chemicals in food and medicine are covered by other EU laws.

Natural substances are also exempted from registration under REACH, if they are not dangerous and have not been chemically modified.

What do I have to do ?

If you manufacture or import 1 tonne or more of any chemical substance per year, you should have pre-registered the substance with the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) between 1 June and 1 December 2008.

Failure to meet this deadline means that you cannot continue producing or importing the substance until you have submitted a full registration dossier. However, if you have pre-registered you can benefit from staggered registration deadlines depending on the substance and the tonnage (2010, 2013 or 2018).

If your company uses chemicals, you must apply, as a downstream user, the safety measures communicated to you by your supplier via a Safety Data Sheet or carry out yourself a chemical safety assessment. Make sure your supplier knows about your uses. If you import any formulated products or articles be aware of your potential registration obligations.

Will REACH ban chemicals ?

Restrictions on marketing and use of chemicals will remain in place and be transferred to REACH. REACH introduces a new authorisation procedure.

This applies to the most dangerous substances, which will be identified at a later stage. First substances may be included on a candidate list of substances of very high concern made available on the ECHA website.

 

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