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<TITLE>The start of something big - REACH in the European Union</TITLE>
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<P><A HREF="http://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/es803484p"><U></U><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Times New Roman">http://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/es803484p</FONT></U></A>
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<P><B><FONT SIZE=6 FACE="Times New Roman">The start of something big</FONT></B>
<BR><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">Maria Burke </FONT>
<BR><I><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">Environ. Sci. Technol.</FONT></I><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">, Article ASAP </FONT>
<BR><B><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">DOI:</FONT></B> <FONT FACE="Times New Roman">10.1021/es803484p </FONT>
<BR><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">Publication Date (Web): December 24, 2008 </FONT>
<BR><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">Copyright © 2008 American Chemical Society </FONT>
<BR><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">The EU’s long-debated chemicals legislation, known as the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation, and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH), is finally under way. In the first stage of the process, the </FONT><A HREF="http://echa.europa.eu"><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Times New Roman">European Chemicals Agency</FONT></U></A><FONT FACE="Times New Roman"> (ECHA) has published a candidate list of 15 “substances of very high concern”; this list is intended to flag the chemicals most dangerous to consumers and to spur the development of safer replacements. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">The legislation allows European consumers to ask retailers whether any products on store shelves contain the 15 chemicals. Manufacturers are obligated to inform consumers within 45 days of the inquiry whether such chemicals are present in the products on sale in the EU market. Chemical manufacturers are also obliged to tell downstream usersother companies that buy or use these chemicalsthat these substances have been identified as being of very high concern. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">In a further step forward, any company that failed by December 1, 2008, to preregister any chemical will be in violation of EU law if it makes or imports that substance after the deadline. Companies that preregister their chemicals buy themselves more time before they have to seek full registrationup to December 2010 if they make more than 1000 metric tons of a substance. Full registration requires the producer to report complete health and safety information. From preregistration data, ECHA can create a picture of the number and quantity of chemicals in use. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">The effects of REACH are extending well outside the EU. “The U.S. chemical industry resisted REACH to begin with, but now REACH requirements are spreading through the global supply chains of chemical companies, becoming embedded in their strategies and processes, and reaching beyond the EU,” says </FONT><A HREF="http://www.ciel.org/Staff/ditz.html"><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Times New Roman">Daryl Ditz</FONT></U></A><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">, a senior policy adviser at the Washington, D.C.-based Center for International Environmental Law, a nonprofit organization. Although the Bush Administration’s policy may have been hostile to REACH, U.S. chemical companies have no choice but to get on board with REACH if they want to continue to do business in the EU, Ditz adds. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">The </FONT><A HREF="http://echa.europa.eu/chem_data/candidate_list_en.asp"><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Times New Roman">candidate list</FONT></U></A><FONT FACE="Times New Roman"> is the first step in a long process. The 15 substances, officially published on October 28, 2008, are either carcinogenic; very persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT); or toxic to reproduction. The list includes three phthalates: bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, dibutyl phthalate, and benzyl butyl phthalate; and the brominated flame retardant hexabromocyclododecane. Chemicals on the list are potentially subject to the authorization process under REACH. Once included on the authorization list, substances cannot be placed on the market or used after a so-called sunset date unless the company is granted an authorization. Authorizations may be granted for certain users or exposures, for example. The first set of chemicals subject to authorization is due to be published in the fall of 2009. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">The candidate list provides an early warning system to chemical users and the public, Ditz says. “The list could influence business decisions even before authorizations or restrictions. For example, retailers such as the clothing company H&M are paying close attention to the list, as they have a duty to tell their customers what’s in their merchandise,” he adds. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">But officials with environmental, health, and consumer groups across Europe stress that the 15 chemicals on the list are merely a drop in the ocean compared with the hundreds of well-known dangerous substances present in products used every day. “The candidate list was supposed to be very long because the second stagethe authorization listwould be limited by resources and time, with the ECHA only managing to work on 10</FONT><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">−</FONT><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">20 substances a year,” explains Ninja Reineke, head of the </FONT><A HREF="http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/where_we_work/europe/what_we_do/wwf_europe_environment/initiatives/chemicals/index.cfm"><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Times New Roman">toxics program at WWF Europe</FONT></U></A><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">, an environmental organization. “It is outrageous that the authorities did not take a more coherent approach to listing known carcinogens or PBT chemicals, which have already been researched by EU bodies.” </FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">Geert Dancet, the executive director of ECHA, has defended the list’s length, citing new administrative procedures and scarce resources. He added that ECHA will add to the list at least once a year. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">This is not enough for a coalition of public interest groups and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), which published a list of its owndubbed the </FONT><A HREF="http://www.sinlist.org"><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Times New Roman">“SIN” (Substitute It Now) list</FONT></U></A><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">in September 2008, naming 267 substances that meet the REACH criteria. They included the phthalates DINP, DiDP, and DNOP and bisphenol A, a well-known endocrine disrupter. NGOs are now focusing their efforts on lobbying EU member states to propose more chemicals for the list. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">Ditz, who was involved in developing the SIN list, notes that the NGOs’ efforts to accelerate the candidate list have found allies in the business world, such as Dell Computer and Sony Ericsson, the mobile phone manufacturer. “They want to make decisions about their products now and don’t want to be surprised every year or so with a new crop of chemicals to worry about,” he explains.</FONT></P>
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<P><FONT COLOR="#000080" SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman">Deborah L. DeBiasi</FONT>
<BR><B><FONT COLOR="#000080" SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman">Email: dldebiasi@deq.virginia.gov</FONT></B>
<BR><FONT COLOR="#000080" SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman">WEB site address: </FONT><A HREF="file://www.deq.virginia.gov"><U></U><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman">www.deq.virginia.gov</FONT></U></A>
<BR><FONT COLOR="#000080" SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman">Virginia Department of Environmental Quality</FONT>
<BR><FONT COLOR="#000080" SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman">Office of Water Permit Programs</FONT>
<BR><FONT COLOR="#000080" SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman">Industrial Pretreatment/Toxics Management Program</FONT>
<BR><FONT COLOR="#000080" SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman">PPCPs, EDCs, and Microconstituents</FONT>
<BR><FONT COLOR="#000080" SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman">Mail: P.O. Box 1105, Richmond, VA 23218</FONT><B></B><B><I> <FONT COLOR="#FF0000" SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman">(NEW!)</FONT></I></B>
<BR><FONT COLOR="#000080" SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman">Location: 629 E. Main Street, Richmond, VA 23219</FONT>
<BR><FONT COLOR="#000080" SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman">PH: 804-698-4028</FONT>
<BR><FONT COLOR="#000080" SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman">FAX: 804-698-4032</FONT>
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