About the chemicals policy initiative
Industrial chemicals, alone or in combination, are the platform upon which key elements of the global economy have been built, and have been incorporated into millions of products used every day. They are traded extensively across the world and they are critical components of everyday products, however, many may have inherently harmful characteristics that can impact ecological and human systems as they are used throughout supply chains. Chemicals can be toxic to ecosystems, harm human health, or build up in the environment and in our bodies for decades without breaking down. To identify and control these hazards, it is necessary to manage the ways in which chemicals are used and sold into commerce.
The Chemicals Policy Initiative is a project of the Lowell Center for Sustainable Production at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. The Initiative seeks to significantly advance the dialog around chemicals policy reform in the US; assist in the development of sustainable chemicals management outside the US; encourage the development and use of safer alternatives by creating and promoting a comprehensive framework for alternatives assessment; and identify tools and appropriate ways of assisting green chemistry innovation and safer supply chain management of chemicals.
new additions to the site
Options for State Chemicals Policy Reform: A Resource Guide
This report outlines a range of options to help reshape and reorient chemicals management policy at the state level so that it more effectively protects health and environment while stimulating innovation, and safer chemistry and products. More...
Presumption of Safety: Limits of Federal Policies on Toxic Substances in Consumer Products
This report identifies four reasons why the regulatory system for protecting the public from toxic substances in toys and other products is inadequate, allowing potentially harmful products to end up on store shelves. More...
Environmental Defense and Pollution Probe released "Not That Innocent: A Comparative Analysis of Canadian, European Union, and United States Policies in Industrial Chemicals." (pdf)
The California Policy Research Center at University of California Berkeley published its report:, "Green Chemistry in California: A Framework for Leadership in Chemicals Policy and Innovation." (pdf).
A growing number of companies are discovering that the approaches of green chemistry and Design for Environment (DfE) allow for a transition to safer alternatives. The Green Chemistry and Commerce Council provides open conversation about the challenges to and opportunities for this successful transition.
reach Legislation Final
The REACH text was informally ‘agreed’ at a 'trialogue' meeting (Government of Finland as the Presidency of the European Union (EU), the European Parliament (EP) and the European Commission) on Thursday, November 30, 2006. The ‘agreement’ reached was endorsed at a COREPER meeting (the meeting of the 'Ambassadors' to the EU from all the Member States) on December 5, 2006. For a summary of the key elements of REACH, download the Lowell Center report, REACH is Here.
The final text of the REACH legislation is available for download at this link.
Click here for information on the fees and charges associated with REACH. The regulation is yet to be formally adopted but this must be achieved before June 1, 2008.
Your questions about REACH answered: Click here.
In June 2007, the European Commission adopted a proposal for the GHS component of REACH regarding classification and labeling. For more information about GHS, click here. ECENT Additions
Breaking news
April 2008: The REACH workshop "Final Countdown to Pre-Registration and Registration of Chemicals" that was organized by the European Commission and the European Chemicals Agency took place in Brussels on April 14, 2008. Information on the workshop can be found here.
Yesterday Commission Regulation (EC) No 340/2008 of April 16, 2008 on the fees and charges payable to the European Chemicals Agency pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) was published.
Furthermore an updated overview of Frequently Asked Questions on REACH by the industry was published on April 9.
There are many negotiations ongoing on the interpretation of the REACH text. One view has been that an only representative (OR) should not aggregate the tonnages from different non-EU manufacturers of the same substance for registration purposes. Work has however been going on in the REACH Implementation Projects RIPs looking at the interpretation of the duties of ORs. The following advice has now been given by the ECHA which changes the position. The implication is now that an OR would aggregate the volumes from different non-EU manufacturers of the same substance. This could have implications, positive and negative; negative, as if they use the same OR for the same substance the tonnages will be aggregated which could mean they end up in a higher tonnage band and positive in that the registration costs will be shared.
Question: "If the same only representative is appointed by two separate non-EU manufacturers of the same substance, is one registration submitted for a combined tonnage or is one registration per non-EU manufacturer required?"
ECHA answer: "An only representative can be appointed by several non-EU manufacturers, formulators or article producers, even for the same substance. In this case, the only representative has to aggregate the volumes of the different non-EU manufacturers, formulators or article producers because the only representatives are treated as importers. As explained by UK, importers do aggregate tonnage."
For more on the Globally Harmonized System for Classification and Labeling (GHS) as it relates to REACH, see this update.
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