Chemicals

In the early days of the European Community it was recognised that there was a need to protect the Community's environment and to create common standards to protect consumers in order to ensure the free circulation of goods among the Member States. For this reason, the first Community environment legislation dealt with products, amongst them dangerous chemicals.

However, in recent years, drawbacks of the current system have been identified and examined. The most important of these are:

• 100.106 existing substances can be used without testing
• burden of proof on public authorities
• no efficient instrument to ensure safe use of the most problematic substances
• lack of incentives for innovation, in particular of less hazardous substitutes

The REACH Regulation addresses the shortcomings of the current system. It relates mainly to the following legislation:

• Directive on the Classification, Packaging and Labelling of Dangerous Substances

• Directive on the Classification, Packaging and Labelling of Dangerous Preparations

• Regulation on the Evaluation and Control of the Risks of Existing Substances

• Directive on Restrictions on the Marketing and Use of certain Dangerous Substances and Preparations

Many other linked measures have been adopted, dealing with Pesticides - divided into two major groups in Community legislation - Plant Protection Products and Biocides; Worker Protection; Prevention of Chemical Accidents and Reduction of Industrial Emissions e.g. Volatile Organic Compounds; Mercury, to form a network of environmental legislation concerning chemicals. In addition, work is progressing in particular on Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals and on Dioxins.