On February 8, 2018 ECHA published its first report on joint market surveillance to evaluate compliance to substance restrictions according to REACH Annex XVII. Contributions to this report have been received from 27 countries which reported on 5625 product checks during the project.

SAFEGUARDS | Consumer Products NO. 023/18

The aim of the REACH-EN-FORCE project was to increase awareness of REACH Annex XVII substance restrictions. During the project, EU market surveillance authorities engaged to identify REACH Annex XVII non-compliances, and to follow-up with enforcement action. The aim was to achieve better compliance and thus a higher degree of health and environmental protection.

27 participating countries reported their results, gathered from 5,625 product checks [1]. These product checks covered 17 substances, 1,009 mixtures and 4,599 articles. The scope of the project covered 14 different restriction entries in REACH Annex XVII. In addition to those 14 product checks, some countries checked eight additional entries. These additional cases are also incorporated into the figures presented in this report.

Table 1 summarizes the REACH Annex XVI entries related substances and tested products:

REACH Annex XVII entry Substances Products in focus
5 Benzene Glues for consumers and professionals
6 Asbestos fibers in articles
23 Cadmium and its compounds Plastic materials/packaging and other articles, brazing fillers and jewelry
27 Nickel and its compounds Jewelry and metal parts (e.g. buttons, zippers)
32 Chloroform Glues for consumers and professionals
43 Azocolorants and Azodyes Textile and leather articles
45 Octabromo Diphenylether (Octa-BDE) Substances and mixtures and articles
47 Chromium VI compounds Leather articles and cement
48 Toluene Adhesives and spray paints intended for supply to the general public
49 Trichlorobenzene Substances and mixtures
50 Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) Articles for supply to the general public
51, 52 Phthalates Toys and childcare articles
63 Lead and its compounds Jewelry

FINDINGS

The rate of compliance to REACH restrictions for the products checked was 82%. The average non-compliance rate was 18%. According to ECHA, this level of non-compliance is considered to be high as REACH restrictions are assigned to the use of chemicals with the highest risks to health or the environment.

The highest rates of non-compliance were found for phthalates in toys. For entries 51 and 52 where 19.7% and 10.4%, respectively, have been found not in line with REACH substance restrictions. Phthalates in childcare articles have a slightly better compliance rate where less than 10% of the checked products contained restricted phthalates. According to ECHA the non-compliance rates determined for phthalates are very high considering that these restrictions are in place to protect children from harmful chemicals and that they have been in force for many years.

The second highest rate was found for cadmium in brazing fillers (Entry 23) where a 14.1% non-compliance rate was determined.

Despite the fact that a substance restriction for asbestos (Entry 6) has been in place for many years, 13.6 % of products checked were non-compliant. The non-compliant articles were mainly from the second-hand market and it is possible that the articles may have been produced before the restriction of asbestos fibers was in force. Despite this practice it is prohibited to make any asbestos containing products available on the market (this includes second-hand products).

Other non-compliance findings concern chromium (VI) in leather products (13.3%), nickel in metal parts of textiles (11.1%), PAH in rubber or plastic parts of articles (7.9%) and heavy metals in jewelry (cadmium 12.1%, nickel 7.9%, and lead 6.7%).

ECHA's CONCLUSION

Significant numbers of non-compliant products, according to REACH Annex XVII substance restrictions, are placed on the EU/EEA market as indicated by the results of the enforcement project. According to ECHA the only way to improve compliance is to influence and enhance the responsibility of companies in the supply chain since the non-compliance indicators relating to REACH substance restrictions, like the look or smell of a product, are insufficient. Information about the chemical composition of products must be provided by suppliers, and companies in the supply chain need to have agreements in force to provide information on chemical composition. ECHA's key message is that it is not worth selling non-compliant products further in the supply chain. In addition, the report highlights that enforcement authorities need to continue enforcing the REACH restrictions by analyzing products on the market. Results of such enforcement actions can be found in the Rapid Alert System (RAPEX) [2] of the European Commission.

SGS will follow up and inform interested parties as developments in the REACH regulation occur. Our expertise combined with consultancy services and experience in consumer product supply chains provides a central point of contact for global solutions. If you would like to learn more about how SGS can support your REACH compliance activities please contact usatreach@sgs.comor visitwww.sgs.com/reach.

For enquiries, please contact:

Udo Krischke

Global Technical Manager RSTS

t: +49 6128 744 235

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SGS SA published this content on 20 February 2018 and is solely responsible for the information contained herein.
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Original documenthttp://www.sgs.com/en/news/2018/02/safeguards-02218-echa-issues-first-report-on-its-harmonized-enforcement-project-on-restrictions

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