The European Commission recently issued a statement reminding relevant businesses that they must register widely used or hazardous chemical substances with the authorities by November 30 this year, in accordance with the Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals (REACH) Regulation.
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), which is responsible for supervising the REACH regulations, has issued a stern warning to companies selling chemicals or products containing chemical substances in the EU, stating that they must comply with the deadline of November 30, 2010, to register the relevant chemical substances with the authorities.
ECHA stated that as of September 10th this year, businesses had submitted approximately 4,000 registration documents, and the number is rapidly increasing. Lead registrants are advised to register by September 30th to allow time for correction should any issues arise, and also to give other registrants ample time to submit their documents by the end of November. Businesses must use the REACH-IT electronic system to submit their documents.
The European Commission acknowledges the industry's efforts, stating that establishing and managing the Substances Exchange Platform (SIEF) is a challenge. This platform allows businesses to share information on chemical substances to fulfill their registration obligations. This registration process affects not only the chemical industry but also those indirectly related to it, such as downstream users.
In addition, after registering chemical substances, businesses must comply with the safety improvement recommendations made by their suppliers, and in some cases, they must conduct their own risk assessments for their specific uses.
ECHA Director Geert Dancet stated on October 6, 2010, that there were thousands of substances for which the industry had previously pledged to register, but the lead registrants had not yet completed the registration process.
Dansett warned that any chemical substance with an annual production exceeding 1,000 metric tons or belonging to a particularly hazardous category would be banned from sale if not registered by November 30, 2010. This includes several types of products manufactured by downstream users and containing such substances. Sometimes, disagreements among SIEF members regarding which studies and data to use for registration are the cause of delays.
The ECHA website contains details and instructions on registration procedures; the URL is http://guidance.echa.europa.eu/guidance3_en.htm.
