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REACH & the Issue of Chemical Substances Present in Apparel/Garments
Compliance Obligation on Exporters
Dr. Rashmi NaiduSr. General Manager (Technical Services)
REACH Support, INDIA
http://www.reach-support.com
About REACH Support
Most sought after, one of its kind helpdesk in India
Clientele spread across Asia, Europe and growing steadily to other
places
Caters to over 800 companies presently
Entire basket of REACH compliance services offered
Providing Assessment & Certification services to various article
exporters
Professionals comprise of experts who have been following REACH
regulation since the draft stages
Contents
REACH in a nutshell
Articles within REACH
REACH – Accessories and Embellishments
Is packaging an article?
SVHC & Restricted Substances (Annex XVII of the REACH regulation)
REACH requirement for substances in article
Notification obligation & Notification deadlines
Communication Obligation
How to calculate the SVHC thresholds within REACH
Importance of supply chain communication
REACH – In a nutshell
REACH - Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals
This regulation requires information to be submitted to the European chemical agency (ECHA) on the properties of chemicals (exported as such) as well as chemicals contained in articles
For exporters of chemicals, the major compliance process is REGISTRATION
For exporters of articles, the compliance process is NOTIFICATION
(though not in each case)
Articles within REACHDefinition
“an object which during production is given a special shape, surface or design
which determines its function to a greater degree than its chemical
composition”
Apparel/garments are considered as articles within REACH as they come in
various shapes & design imparting various functionalities
REACH - Accessories & Embellishments
Accessories include a variety of articles like Buttons, Zippers & Zippers Sliders, Rivets, Buckles, Beads, Cuff Links, etc
Embellishments include Flat metal embellishments, hand beaded brooch, rhinestone embellishment, crystal brad, etc
If accessories and embellishments are exported as such to Europe, they will be treated individually as articlesAccordingly other REACH obligations also have to be complied with
Is PACKAGING an article? YES
The apparel can be packaged in cardboard boxes, plastic bags, paper, etc.
Packaging is considered as a separate article within REACH
Exporters also have obligation to check for SVHC and restricted chemicals in packaging
Important to check the chemical used like paints, etc used to mark the packaging
If an SVHC is present, the obligations for the packaging would be the same as for the apparel
However, if the packaging ends up as waste in Europe, no separate obligation exists for the packaging
Substances of very high concern (SVHC)
What are SVHC
Substances of very high concern are:
• PBT substances• vPvB substances• CMR category 1, 2 substances Substances of equivalent concern (having endocrine disrupting properties)
In a nutshell, substances very toxic to the human health and environment shall be categorized as SVHC
SVHC & Restricted Substances (Annex XVII) of REACH
ECHA has finalized 53 SVHC till date The complete list can be found at www.reach-or.com /www.apparel-reach.com/www.echa.europa.eu
Annex XVII (52 substances & in some cases category of substances (Phthalates, PAHs, CMR substances in Annex I of EC/67/548)
Restrictions on the Manufacture, Placing on the Market and Use of Certain Dangerous Substances, Preparations and Articles Name & category of chemicals Conditions of Restriction
Annex XVII entry into effect from June ‘ 2009
REACH Requirements for Substances in Article
There are essentially three requirements
1. Pre-registration & Registration of chemical released intentionally from the article during normal or foreseeable conditions of use provided:• Release is intentional (e.g. – perfume from the shirts)
Intentional release – Deliberate and contributes to an added value of the article • Chemical (which is released) is present in greater than one ton* in the export consignment (per annum)• The substance has not been registered for that use
Examples of intentional release from apparel
Socks – Antibacterial chemical released upon contact with body to avoid “smelly” socks
Perfumed Shirts – Fragrance chemicals added to provide freshness
Inner wear – Softners added specially in baby inner wear to avoid rashes to the delicate skin
Pre-registration/registration seem highly unlikely for the majority of the apparel exporters, except for similar cases as above.
REACH Requirements for Substances in Article (Contd..)
2. Notification of SVHC if:
SVHC is greater than 0.1% wt by wt (1000 ppm) and tonnage of SVHC exceeds 1 ton per annum in the annual exports of apparel to Europe
3. Communication of SVHC if:
SVHC is greater than 0.1% wt by wt (1000 ppm) in article but less than 1 ton per annum
Apparel exporters need to confirm Notification or Communication obligations based upon a technical assessment of the chemical used in their entire production chain
Notification Requirements to the ECHA
The information to be notified includes the following:
• The identity and contact details of the producer of article• The registration number (s) for the SVHC, if available • The identity of the SVHC (s) like name of the substance, CAS, EINECS
No, etc • The classification of the SVHC, which will be available from the
Agency • A brief description of the use (s) of the SVHC in the article and of the
uses of the article (s) • The tonnage range of the SVHC, i.e. 1-10 tonnes, 10-100 tonnes etc.
Notification Deadlines
For substances included in the SVHC list before 1 December 2010, the notifications have to be submitted not later than 1 June 2011
If Notification applies but has not been done, it is mandatory to complete the Notification before exporting article to avoid penalties
For substances included in the SVHC list on or after 1 December 2010, the notifications have to be submitted no later than 6 months after the inclusion in candidate list
Communication Requirements to the ECHA
The recipient of the article with sufficient information to allow safe use of the article including, as a minimum, the name of the substance”
Only for SVHC on the ‘Candidate List’ No tonnage limit (i.e. also applies below 1 ton/year)
REACH Article 33(2)Consumers can request the same information. The information should be provided within 45 days, free of charge.
How to calculate the SVHC thresholds (EXAMPLE)
Intentional Release
Consider a baby innerwear containing chemical lotion
Wt of 1 inner wear 100 gmWt of chemical in this inner wear 10 gmAmount of chemical that shall be intentionally released 06 gmInner wear pieces exported to Europe (1 calendar year) 10,000Total wt of the annual export 10,00,000 gm
(1000 kg)Total quantity that shall be intentionally released 60 kg
Intentional release quantity less than 1000 kg or 1 ton.
Thus NO PRE-REGISTRATION & REGISTRATION obligation of the exporter of this innerwear
How to calculate the SVHC thresholds (EXAMPLE)
No Intentional release but SVHC present
Consider a ladies top containing Cobalt dichloride, an SVHC used as mordant dye
Wt of 1 ladies top 300 gmWt of chemical in this ladies top 20 gm%wt/wt 6.66%wt/wtLadies top exported to Europe (1 calendar year) 10,000 piecesTotal wt of the annual export 30,00,000 gm
(3000 kg)Total quantity of chemical in the annual export 200 kg
Thus NO NOTIFICATION obligation (since total quantity is less than 1 ton per annum) but obligation of COMMUNICATION since %wt/wt exceeds 0.1% (6.6%)
Some restricted substances in textile
Tris (2,3 dibromopropyl) phosphate (CAS No 126-72-7) - Shall not be used in textile articles, such as garments, undergarments and linen, intended to come into contact with the skin.
Tris(aziridinyl)phosphinoxide (CAS No 5455-55-1) - Shall not be used in textile articles, such as garments, undergarments and linen, intended to come into contact with the skin.
Nickel (CAS No 7440-02-0) and its compounds - rivet buttons, tighteners, rivets, zippers and metal marks, when these are used in garments
Azocolourants - above 30 ppm in the finished articles clothing, bedding, towels and nappies
REACH - Accessories & Embellishments
Accessories include a variety of articles like Buttons, Zippers & Zippers Sliders, Rivets, Buckles, Beads, Cuff Links, etc
Embellishments include Flat metal embellishments, hand beaded brooch, rhinestone embellishment, crystal brad, etc
If accessories and embellishments are exported as such to Europe, they will be treated individually as articlesAccordingly other REACH obligations also have to be complied with
Importance of supply chain communication
If the entire production chain is in-house, get the supply chain inventorized for all chemical inputs
If certain operations like dyeing/printing are outsourced, ask for the details of the chemicals used in these operations and make a note of the same
For the accessories and embellishments used in the apparel, ask the suppliers for the raw materials used in their production
If the suppliers cite confidentiality as the reason for not sharing the details, share with them the SVHC list & request them to give you an undertaking that none of the SVHC is used
PLEASE REMEMBER – It is very important to get the entire supply chain scanned for the chemicals used during production of the export article (finished and packed apparel)
Contact Details
For details, please visit
http://www.reach-support.com
http://www.reach-or.com
http://www.reach-onlyrep.eu
http://www.apparel-reach.com
For answers to queries, please write to
