Reach: UIC highlights French concerns

16 November 2005 11:09  [Source: ICIS news]

PARIS (ICIS news)--France's chemicals trade group Union des Industries Chimiques (UIC) on Wednesday warned of the potential impact of Reach, the European Union's (EU's) proposed new chemicals policy, on industry competitiveness.

Ahead of EU's parliamentary vote on Thursday on the draft Reach legislation, it said that the future rules, which aim to protect the continent from harmful chemicals, would apply to more than 80% of the small and medium-size companies that make up the French chemicals chemical industry.

It said it was generally satisfied with Reach amendments being tabled in the plenary debate in the European Parliament (EP) in Strasbourg but added its concerns with the regulation applying only to EU chemicals and not to imported products.

UIC said it believed data-sharing under the one substance, one registration (OSOR) proposal should not be imposed, but applied on a voluntary basis, for reasons of confidentiality.

Substitution of substances deemed to be "extremely worrying" should not be compulsory, it said, if it can be proven that the risk linked to their use was properly controlled.

By: Doris Leblond
+44 20 8652 3214

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