Two chemicals used in imaging are added to the list of substances of very high concern that may harm people or the environment.
ECHA, the Helsinki based European Chemicals Agency added the two substances to the Candidate List yesterday (19 January 2021). The two substances are used in products, such as inks or toners and to produce plastics and rubber tyres. They were added to the Candidate List as they are toxic for reproduction and therefore, may adversely affect sexual function and fertility, and cause developmental toxicity in offspring.
Companies must follow their legal obligations and ensure the safe use of these chemicals. From January 2021 onwards, they also have to notify ECHA under the Waste Framework Directive if their products contain substances of very high concern. This notification is submitted to ECHA’s SCIP database and the information will later be published on the Agency’s website.
The Candidate List includes substances of very high concern that may have serious effects on our health or the environment. These substances may be placed on the Authorisation List in the future, which means that companies would need to apply for permission to continue using them.
Under the REACH Regulation, companies may have legal obligations when their substance is included – either on its own, in mixtures or in articles – in the Candidate List. Any supplier of articles containing a Candidate List substance above a concentration of 0.1 % weight by weight has to give sufficient information to their customers and consumers to allow safe use.
Importers and producers of articles containing a Candidate List substance have six months from the date of its inclusion in the list (19 January 2021) to notify ECHA. Suppliers of substances on the Candidate List (supplied either on their own or in mixtures) have to provide their customers with a safety data sheet.
As of 5 January 2021, article suppliers must notify substances of very high concern in their articles to ECHA’s SCIP database under the Waste Framework Directive.
Details of the substances added to the list:
