REACh has reached us!
Marlesreuth, 01.10.2008 - Not long ago, the Association of the German Home Textiles Industry in Wuppertal invited producers and customers of decoration fabrics and furnishing fabrics to a seminar on the impact of the new REACh Regulation as far as the textile industry is concerned. The seminar was hold in the premises of Gebrüder Munzert, a weaving mill for home textiles in Marlesreuth.
From Geretsried and Ansbach via Kulmbach up to the local Upper Franconian manufacturing companies about 30 guests participated with great interest in this seminar on a burning issue.
Bernd Kout, Vice President of the Association of the German Home Textiles Industry and CEO of the company Munzert in Marlesreuth, welcomed the seminar participants and explained the aims and tasks of this association representing the interests of its member companies, e.g. the producers of bed linen, furnishing fabrics and decoration fabrics as well as curtains and carpets vis-à-vis policy-makers and economic affairs, also on a European level. In addition, this association offers services to its members in the domains of environmental policy, technology, debt collection and many more.
Gerhard Sperling, graduate engineer, in the association Head of Unit concerning technology and environmental protection, gave a short overview on the multi-faceted aspects and impacts of this new regulation on the producers of textiles.
REACh is the abbreviation of “Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation of Chemicals” and the EU-wide chemicals regulation in force since June 2007.
According to this regulation all chemical substances have to be registered which are produced in or imported into the EU in quantities of 1 ton minimum per year. For higher quantities and for more risky substances an additional assessment or authorisation is obligatory.
Producers or importers of such substances have to submit certain data for registration to the new established European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) in Helsinki.
The regulation has noble goals. Producers and importers of a chemical substance now have to prove that this substance is not hazardous to human health. In addition, the different laws in the EU countries will have to be harmonised so that finally a further protection of human health and of the environment will be achieved.
Downstream users of chemical substances also often found in the textile industry have to comply with this regulation.
In spite of the fact that REACh has been in force since one year, there are still many disputed points and many uncertainties which products are concerned. Apart from the raw material really used in the fabrics it is also necessary to register packing material such as foils or cardboard tubes.
There was also a lively discussion concerning the information on the future layout of additional safety data sheets which are important for continuing the work with the corresponding materials.
As a result of the seminar the participants had to state that by REACh intra-Community products are placed at a disadvantage relative to imports and that the procurement costs and the bureaucracy surely will increase for the producers of textiles.
For the German chemicals industry alone the additional expenditure is estimated to amount to approx. 5 billion EUR until the year 2010.
According to an expertise on the “sum of the lost years of one’s life” by selected risk factors like smoking and the abuse of alcohol with more than 10 % are more than 100 times higher than the 0.1 % of risk factors avoidable by REACh. Humans could also profit from doing more sports and exercise.
Overview
From Geretsried and Ansbach via Kulmbach up to the local Upper Franconian manufacturing companies about 30 guests participated with great interest in this seminar on a burning issue.
Bernd Kout, Vice President of the Association of the German Home Textiles Industry and CEO of the company Munzert in Marlesreuth, welcomed the seminar participants and explained the aims and tasks of this association representing the interests of its member companies, e.g. the producers of bed linen, furnishing fabrics and decoration fabrics as well as curtains and carpets vis-à-vis policy-makers and economic affairs, also on a European level. In addition, this association offers services to its members in the domains of environmental policy, technology, debt collection and many more.
Gerhard Sperling, graduate engineer, in the association Head of Unit concerning technology and environmental protection, gave a short overview on the multi-faceted aspects and impacts of this new regulation on the producers of textiles.
REACh is the abbreviation of “Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation of Chemicals” and the EU-wide chemicals regulation in force since June 2007.
According to this regulation all chemical substances have to be registered which are produced in or imported into the EU in quantities of 1 ton minimum per year. For higher quantities and for more risky substances an additional assessment or authorisation is obligatory.
Producers or importers of such substances have to submit certain data for registration to the new established European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) in Helsinki.
The regulation has noble goals. Producers and importers of a chemical substance now have to prove that this substance is not hazardous to human health. In addition, the different laws in the EU countries will have to be harmonised so that finally a further protection of human health and of the environment will be achieved.
Downstream users of chemical substances also often found in the textile industry have to comply with this regulation.
In spite of the fact that REACh has been in force since one year, there are still many disputed points and many uncertainties which products are concerned. Apart from the raw material really used in the fabrics it is also necessary to register packing material such as foils or cardboard tubes.
There was also a lively discussion concerning the information on the future layout of additional safety data sheets which are important for continuing the work with the corresponding materials.
As a result of the seminar the participants had to state that by REACh intra-Community products are placed at a disadvantage relative to imports and that the procurement costs and the bureaucracy surely will increase for the producers of textiles.
For the German chemicals industry alone the additional expenditure is estimated to amount to approx. 5 billion EUR until the year 2010.
According to an expertise on the “sum of the lost years of one’s life” by selected risk factors like smoking and the abuse of alcohol with more than 10 % are more than 100 times higher than the 0.1 % of risk factors avoidable by REACh. Humans could also profit from doing more sports and exercise.
