DEPARTMENT FOR
ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS News Release (153/07) issued by
The Government News Network on 31 May 2007
The REACH
Regulation on the management and control of chemicals comes into
force tomorrow, 1 June. REACH, which stands for Registration,
Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals, is aimed at ensuring a
high level of protection of human health and the environment, as
well as improving industry competitiveness and innovation.
Jeff Rooker, Minister of Sustainable Farming and Food
said:
"REACH is an important step forward. It is good
news for the environment and health, and it should also assist
industry. But industry needs to make sure that it is gearing up so
it can make full use of the pre-registration opportunity next
year. We will be working with our partners, especially in the UK
Competent Authority, part of the Health and Safety Executive, to
do all that we can we can to make sure that industry hears the
message about REACH, and particularly about pre-registration."
REACH sets in place measures for industry to provide evidence of
any chemical risks and will make sure everyone in the supply chain
knows how to use them safely. It will encourage innovation as it
removes the significantly greater administrative burdens that
newly-developed substances have faced in the past. The law also
contains robust drivers to substitute the most hazardous
substances, so that where there is a suitable safer alternative,
REACH will make sure that industry uses it.
Although REACH comes into effect on 1 June 2007, the first major
milestone for business is 1 July 2008 - the beginning of a six
month window when chemical manufacturers can pre-register their
products - a very simple process. But if they miss the window they
will have to go through the much more involved registration
process straightaway.
A helpline has been set up by the UK Competent Authority for
REACH. Businesses can obtain advice on how it will affect them
and what they need to do to comply. The helpdesk can be contacted
on 0845 4089575 or UKREACHCA@hse.gsi.gov.uk. The UK Government
REACH website is at http://www.hse.gov.uk/reach
Notes to editors:
1. The main elements of REACH are:
*
Registration requires industry to obtain relevant information on
chemical substances produced or supplied above 1 tonne a year and
to use that data to manage the chemicals safely. The need to
register comes into force on 1 June 2008. However, if a producer
pre-registers before 1 December 2008 registration is spread over
the 11 years to 2019, depending on the tonnage produced.
*
Evaluation provides the opportunity for regulators to assess
whether the information provided by industry is sufficient and
that they have applied the right risk management measures.
*
Authorisation controls the use of substances of highest concern.
Here a substance with the most hazardous properties, such as those
that cause cancer would be subject to a ban unless industry can
demonstrate that the risks are properly controlled or that there
are socio-economic benefits outweighing the risks. Authorisation
contains strong drivers to substitute hazardous chemicals with
safer alternatives.
2. Under REACH, manufacturers, importers, distributors and
professional users who market or use chemicals must ensure that
they are registered with the new European Chemicals Agency in
Helsinki, which will oversee the operation of the Regulation
throughout the EU. This will require information about the
characteristics and hazards, if any, associated with a chemical.
Those chemicals that pose a serious hazard may be banned (i.e.
restricted), or may be used only following the grant of a specific 'authorisation'.
3. Around 100,000 different substances are on the EU's list
of existing chemicals, of which around 30,000 are thought to be
manufactured or imported in quantities above 1 tonne. Adequate
information on their environmental and health effects is available
for only a small proportion of these chemicals.
4. The EU chemicals industry employs around 1.7m people directly
plus another 3m indirectly. It generates around £238bn per year,
resulting in a trade surplus of around £25bn. In the UK, it is
worth £49bn per year with a trade surplus of £4.3bn.
5. The current regulatory system for dealing with existing
substances, in place since 1994, has been too slow to produce
results. In its first 10 years of operation it has identified 141
chemicals of high concern; however, risk assessments have only
been completed on around 71.
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