REACH
Safe and secure chemical substance handling
REACH (Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of CHemicals) is fully supported by LANXESS. The EG Regulation [VO (EG) No 1907/2006] was created for the purpose of reforming European chemicals legislation. It governs the handling of all chemical substances in preparations and products, including the substances themselves, irrespective of whether they have hazardous properties or not. In the case of imports, products are only affected by REACH if they release substances or contain substances causing particular concern.
REACH means responsible action
REACH requires manufacturers and importers to be responsible for the safety of their chemicals and provide the necessary data for evaluation. They must be able to demonstrate convincingly that their products are safe to handle for all envisaged uses and do not compromise the health of workers, consumers or the environment. Manufacturers and importers must register substances manufactured or imported in quantities of more than one metric ton per year per manufacturer or importer. Information on the substances together with possible required documentation must be filed electronically with the newly created central chemicals agency ECHA in Helsinki. The scope of the data to be provided for registration depends on the quantity, hazardous properties and anticipated use of the substance.
REACH means responsible planning
With this information, manufacturers/importers must make it possible for downstream users to be able to handle the supplied chemicals safely, with no risk to the population or the environment. Provisional deadlines (see below) have been set for registering chemical substances which are already on the market. The REACH process had started with the pre-registration of these substances, a procedure that was possible until December 1, 2008. Since LANXESS has completed this pre-registration on time, the following provisional deadlines now apply for subsequent full registration:
November 2010:
- for all products in quantities of > 1,000 tons per year
- for products harmful to the environment with an N rating (R50/53)* from 100 tons per year
- for CMR** products in categories 1 and 2 from 1 ton per year
May 2013:
- for other products in quantities of 100 to 1,000 tons per year
May 2018:
- for other products in quantities of 1 to 100 tons per year
Transparency at all levels
The aim of REACH is to assure safe handling of products for all applications. This requires an ongoing exchange of relevant information between all the parties involved in the supply chain. Increased cooperation between manufacturers/importers, workers and end-users means greater transparency throughout the product chain:
- Traders must pass on information obtained so as not to break the information chain.
- In this way, end-users will receive more information on the safe handling of the relevant products but must also be actively involved, particularly in informing their suppliers of the use of their products.
REACH is everyone’s concern
Only a few chemical substances don’t need to be registered. Polymers and some natural products, pharmaceutical, biocidal and crop protection active ingredients are exempt from registration. However, in the case of polymers their monomer units have to be registered. This is the responsibility of the monomer manufacturer. If polymers are to be imported into the European Union, the importer must register each monomer with a level of two percent weight on weight or more in the polymer, if the total imported quantity of the monomer amounts to one metric ton per year or more.
In the course of evaluating a registration, the ECHA will assess which tests still need to be carried out using the information in the registration dossier.
* N(R50/53): dangerous for the environment, very toxic to aquatic organisms, may cause long-term adverse effects in the aquatic environment
** CMR: carcinogenic, mutagenic, reprotoxic
