Maribor, 23rd June 2008 - Today Ministers of Agriculture from all EU member states decide about their common position about relevant legislation on pesticides. Before this meeting of ministers, NGO experts from 11 European countries* discussed main improvements on proposals of new legislation on international 2 day workshop held in Maribor in Slovenia.
Brusel/Praha - 10. října 2006 - Drtivá většina členů parlamentního výboru pro životní prostředí (41:17) v dnešním hlasování podpořila povinnou náhradu nejškodlivějších chemických látek v případě, že za ně existuje bezpečnější náhrada. Výbor dále podpořil zavedení obecné garance bezpečnosti (Duty of Care) ze strany chemického průmyslu za bezpečnost i těch jeho produktů, na které by se nevztahovala registrace v rámci směrnice REACH. Do třetice europoslanci podpořili právo spotřebitelů na lepší informace o chemických látkách obsažených ve výrobcích denní potřeby.
Společná tisková zpráva EEB, PAN Europe a HEAL z 13. ledna 2009
5.12.2008 - Following months of political negotiations, the Parliamentary Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) today voted on proposals for a Regulation and Framework Directive on the use and authorisation of pesticides. The Committee backed away from previous commitments to eliminate hazardous pesticides from use in food produce, instead agreeing a substantially diluted set of proposals.
From 1 September 2008, the maximum legal limits on the level of pesticides allowed in food items sold in the EU will dramatically increase. Dietary exposure to pesticides is set to rise while many residue limits will become unsafe for consumers. The development follows new legislation from the European Commission intended to harmonise food standards across the EU.
The European Commission made today an important step forward in its efforts to ensure food safety in the European Union, as a regulation revising and simplifying the rules pertaining to pesticide residues entered into force. The new rules set harmonised Maximum Residue Levels (MRLs) for pesticides.
“Using specially developed nanocomplex”, “thermo-active Nano Exfoliating technology”, “based on nanoproteins”.... Cosmetic products containing nanomaterials are already widely available on the European market, for example in sun protection products, anti-aging creams... despite unanswered questions about their safety.
23.9.2008 - Poslanecká sněmovna definitivně schválila dvě novely zákonů o životním prostředí – poslaneckou novelu zákona o odpadech a novelu zákona o chemických látkách, která do české legislativy zavádí požadavky evropského nařízení o systému REACH. „Velmi vítám obě rozhodnutí poslanců,“ konstatoval ministr životního prostředí Martin Bursík.
Tisková zpráva MŽP ČR z 12. 3. 2008- MŽP musí na včerejší vyjádření pana prezidenta v souvislosti s vrácením zákona o chemických látkách a chemických přípravcích /tzv.REACH/ zareagovat v několika bodech.
New Greenpeace study shows children in particular endangered - From 1 September, fruits and vegetables with higher levels of pesticide contamination will legally be allowed onto the German market as a result of the European harmonisation of pesticide limits.
Podle vědeckých testů, které si nechala vypracovat organizace Greenpeace, obsahuje nový iPhone firmy Apple nebezpečné materiály a chemické látky. Jde o první test výrobku Apple od květnového závazku Steva Jobse, ředitele společnosti, že Apple zezelená a bude na trh uvádět výrobky šetrnější k životnímu prostředí.
Společná tisková zpráva CHEM Trust, Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), European Environmental Bureau, Friends of the Earth Europe, Greenpeace, Health and Environment Alliance, Women in Europe for a Common Future, WWF z 28. října 2008.
10.3.2009 - Znečišťující emise z tisíců průmyslových zařízení v celé Unii musí být snižovány, ale flexibilněji, domnívají se poslanci. Parlament dnes přijal návrh Komise na aktualizaci a zpřísnění platných pravidel, do nějž EP začlenil nová ustanovení týkající se zavedení celoevropských limitů pro emise, větší flexibility při poskytování povolenek a vyjmutí málo využívaných zařízení z působnosti směrnice.
18.12.2008 - Poslanci EP dnes přijali novou směrnici, která má zvýšit bezpečnost vyráběných hraček, zejména pokud jde o obsah nebezpečných chemických a karcinogenních látek a těžkých kovů. Dalším cílem nové legislativy, u níž se Parlament a Rada dohodly na kompromisním znění, je harmonizovat pravidla pro výrobu hraček s požadavky evropských právních předpisů o zboží (tzv. „goods package”), které mají zanedlouho vstoupit v platnost.
13.1.2009 - Evropský parlament dnes v druhém čtení široce podpořil legislativní balíček týkající se problematiky využívání pesticidů, který si klade za cíl omezit využívání pesticidů a snížit jejich škodlivý dopad na lidské zdraví a životní prostředí. Legislativní návrhy obsahují rovněž opatření, která mají zajistit bezpečnější využívání pesticidů v každodenním životě.
Poslanci Evropského parlamentu (EP) schválili ve druhém čtení soubor čtyř nařízení týkajících se užívání aditiv, aromatických látek a enzymů do potravin. Jde o soubor čtyř nařízení, která mají stávající legislativu modernizovat a zjednodušit pravidla pro používání potravinářských aditiv.
31.3.2009 - The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) presented a list of priority chemicals for authorisation under REACH to the European Parliament. ETUC is calling on the Member States and European Commission for the 306 substances of very high concern on its list – especially the 191 that cause recognised occupational diseases – to be included on the candidate list of substances for authorisation under the REACH rules.
Helsinki, 14. 1. 2009 - ECHA launched today a public consultation on the first draft recommendation of substances to be included in the list of substances subject to authorisation (Annex XIV or Authorisation List). Interested parties can submit comments by using the relevant web forms on the ECHA website until 14 April 2009.
The public consultation on the draft recommendation is part of the process to include substances in Annex XIV of REACH (Authorisation List).
PUBLIC CONSULTATION
Interested parties can comment both on:
• ECHA’s draft recommendation on seven substances (see below) and its reasoning behind their inclusion in Annex XIV and
• ECHA’s justification for prioritising these substances.
Interested parties are invited to comment in particular on uses which should be exempted from the authorisation requirements. The web forms on the ECHA website must be used for commenting. The closing date for comments is 14 April 2009.
ECHA’S DRAFT RECOMMENDATION
Based on an assessment of the available information, ECHA recommends prioritising seven substances out of the 15 substances that are on the Candidate List (published 28 October 2008). The prioritised substances are:
• 5-tert-butyl-2,4,6-trinitro-m-xylene (musk xylene)
• Alkanes,C10-13,chloro (short chain chlorinated paraffins; SCCPs)
• Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD) and all major diastereoisomers identified
• 4,4’-Diamino diphenyl methane (MDA)
• Bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP)
• Benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP)
• Dibutyl phthalate (DBP)
In the first draft recommendation ECHA furthermore proposes that:
• applications for authorisations should be submitted between 24 and 30 months after the above substances have been included in Annex XIV of REACH,
• these substances could not be used after 42 to 48 months after the inclusion date. ECHA proposes to include exemptions for uses of the prioritised substances that are permitted under specific conditions set out in the current legislation on Restrictions onMarketing and Use Directive (76/769/EEC) as explained in the consultation documents.
ECHA has assessed the available information on the substances included on the Candidate List against the three prioritisation criteria listed in the REACH Regulation, related to 1) the intrinsic properties of a substance, 2) the nature of its uses and 3) the volume supplied to uses subject to authorisation. A weight of evidence approach was used to come to an overall conclusion on the priority of a substance. For some substances the regulatory effectiveness of putting the substance under the authorisation regime was also taken into account. The methodology is explained in the consultation documents.
On the basis of the comments received during this consultation, ECHA may modify the draft recommendation. In this process, it will take into account the opinion of the Member State Committee. After this, the ECHA recommendation is submitted to the European Commission for final decision (see attachment to this press release).
The eight substances that have not been prioritised now may be reconsidered by ECHA for prioritisation at a later stage. Any substance on the Candidate List which is not yet included in Annex XIV can be part of a future priority setting.
Further Information
Public consultation for draft recommendations for priority substances for the inclusion in Annex XIV (authorisation list):
http://echa.europa.eu/consultations/authorisation/draft_recommendations_en.asp
Candidate List published on 28 October 2008:
http://echa.europa.eu/chem_data/candidate_list_en.asp
An overview of the authorisation process under REACH:
http://guidance.echa.europa.eu/authorisation_en.htm
Restrictions on Marketing and Use Directive (76/769/EEC):
http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/chemicals/legislation/markrestr/index_en.htm
REACH-EN-FORCE-1, a joint REACH enforcement project, has started across Europe. National inspectors are checking pre-registrations, registrations and – where applicable – the provisions for Safety Data Sheets. The Forum for Exchange of Information on Enforcement, meeting for the fourth time this week in Helsinki, reviewed the start of the project and agreed on the further steps.
ECHA Member State Committee (MSC) endorsed a Code of Conduct for observers on its third meeting held on 3-4 September in Helsinki. These rules will be applied at all meetings of ECHA Committees, the Forum and other networks of ECHA.
Based on the Code of Conduct for observers, each invited stakeholder organisation is asked to nominate for each body concerned one permanent observer who can be accompanied by an expert on the topic(s) of discussion. Stakeholder organisations can thereby contribute tothe technical and scientific debate while ensuring continuity. The rules also explain how these observers can submit documents to committees and get access to the documents circulated by the Secretariat and the members while preserving the confidentiality.
Executive Director Geert Dancet welcomes this code and stressed that “the presence of observers from stakeholder organisations at meetings of Agency bodies and networks will contribute to the transparency and openness of decision-making under REACH and support the information flow between the Agency and the stakeholder organisations”.
In the meantime, several stakeholder organisations have accepted the invitation to participate in the work of the Committees, the Forum or one of the Agency networks and have nominated permanent observers.
The MSC also agreed that its working procedures will be published on ECHA website for transparency. “We hope that this will make it easier to understand what kind of comments received during the public consultation are relevant at this phase when we are dealing with the identification of substances of very high concern for authorisation,” says Anna-Liisa Sundquist, Chair of the Member State Committee. “Comments related to use, exposure, risks and alternatives will be relevant at a later phase, for priority setting.”
At its meeting in October, the MSC will address the first candidates for the list of substances of very high concern for authorisation. EU Member States´ competent authorities submitted until now 16 Annex XV dossiers on identification of substances of very high concern which were subject to public consultation in July and August.