German agency urges REACH amendment for PBTs, vPBTs

09 October 2009 16:05  [Source: ICIS news]

TORONTO (ICIS news)--Germany’s federal environmental agency is pressing for a legislative amendment to the REACH criteria on persistent, bio accumulative and toxic (PBT) and very persistent and very bio accumulative (vPvB) substances, it said on Friday.

The REACH criteria for PBTs and vPvBs were out-of-date and did not reflect the current state of science, and as such could jeopardise the effective protection of human health and the environment from hazardous substances, the Umweltbundesamt (UBA) said.

“UBA urges the [EU] Commission to present a proposal taking into account current scientific knowledge,” it said.

The agency’s call comes in the run-up to the high-level “Meeting of Competent Authorities” for REACH in Brussels next week.

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By: Stefan Baumgarten
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