ECHA

Greetings from a sunny Helsinki – we are finally starting to see the spring colours after a very long winter, a sight that is very welcome indeed! It was, as always, a great pleasure to meet so many of you at our eighth Stakeholders' Day here in Helsinki at the end of March. It was particularly satisfying also to welcome a record number of online guests: over 1 600 joined us online.

By 12 of April, ECHA had received 4 003 registrations for 1 617 substances related to the 31 May deadline. During the last days of March many lead registrants submitted their dossiers to benefit from a shorter deadline for receiving the result of ECHA's completeness check. Once the lead dossier has been accepted, it is time for the member registrants, registering the same substance, to submit their dossiers.

ECHA has taken another look at the progress made in evaluation activities during 2012 and published a new edition of its annual evaluation report. The main finding remains the same: the quality of information provided in the registration dossiers is mixed, especially when it comes to the clarity with which a substance is identified.

On the European Consumer Day, 15 March, ECHA launched an interactive quiz on its website about the new hazard pictograms introduced by the Classification, Labelling and Packaging (CLP) Regulation. The aim is to help raise awareness about the new pictograms and encourage people to read the labels on their products.

The Estonian competent authority, the Health Board, recently carried out a CLP campaign aimed at raising consumer awareness on the new labelling elements and on the importance of reading the labels on products.

A new provision of the Biocidal Products Regulation is Union authorisation, which gives applicants the possibility to apply for an EU-wide authorisation of their biocidal products in one go. Using this alternative can decrease the administrative burden of companies who are planning to place their biocidal products on several national EU markets.

The Biocidal Products Committee is preparing for its new and important task. It will be heavily involved in the approval of active substances and the authorisation of biocidal products under the Biocidal Products Regulation, which enters into operation on 1 September 2013.

Communication and processing exposure scenarios in the supply chain is one of the challenges many downstream users of chemicals face. Hence, clear and comprehensive communication is essential to allow the safe use of substances and products, and to support the spirit of REACH. ECHA Newsletter spoke with Marianne Lyngsaae, REACH adviser with Brenntag in Europe, to hear how a major chemical distributor deals with the additional information received in exposure scenarios, and communicates it further downstream. We also spoke with Egil Jørgensen and John Outzen, two production employees at a Brenntag formulation plant in Hosten, Denmark, to hear how the exposure scenario information is used at the production site.

ECHA kicks off a first exercise to draft the implementation plan of the SVHC Roadmap for 2020 with Member States and the Commission in a high level meeting in April.

The first results of substance evaluation done by the Member States were concluded at the end of February. 17 Member States evaluated all together 36 substances in 2012 and in 32 cases they propose to ask the registrants to provide more information to clarify a potential concern. For four substances the evaluation was concluded without a need for additional information.

The REACH Regulation aims to improve understanding on the chemicals used in Europe by making information available on their impact and safe use. So far, the REACH database contains information on more than 8 000 chemicals on the EU market from over 33 000 registration dossiers. The amount of data has grown enormously compared to the past. How is ECHA making the best use of this information? ECHA Newsletter finds out.

Legislation and practicalities in the chemicals regulatory sector are very different in Europe and North America. However, there are many opportunities for mutual learning for both ECHA and the authorities in the United States and Canada.

ECHA recently published an overview of its stakeholder survey results from 2012. The survey is used to evaluate all the performance indicators mentioned in ECHA's Work Programme where an annual survey is set as the evaluation method. The published overview contains all the questions that were asked of ECHA's stakeholders, as well as their responses.

ECHA's Management Board held its 29th meeting in Dublin from 21 to 22 March 2013 on the invitation by the national authorities, namely the Irish Health and Safety Authority (HSA) and the Ministry for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation. It discussed, among other things, the Agency's budget, staffing levels and the impact of the REACH review on ECHA.

The REACH Regulation has led to an improvement in the quality of data available for the assessment of chemicals as well as better control of risks according to the five year update of the REACH Baseline Study. The study was published in 2012 as part of the REACH Review and is based on a comparison of the situation between 2007, pre-REACH, and 2011.

ECHA's eighth Stakeholders' day provided last minute tips and recommendations for REACH 2013 registrants. Good quality information in registration dossiers was once again emphasised as the means of ensuring the safe use of chemicals - as well as avoiding legal action either from ECHA or the national enforcement authorities.

ECHA Newsletter asked Ms Marja Ola from the the Federation of Finnish Commerce and Mr Leo van der Biessen, Senior Consultant at Royal Haskoning DHV, their views on REACH.

The fifth global chemical industry congress, Helsinki Chemicals Forum, focuses this year on the 2020 goals and the sound international management of chemicals, chemicals in products, regulation of nanomaterials, listing of chemicals of concern and combination effects.

Chemicals have become an integrated part of our modern life. Using these chemicals sensibly is of crucial importance for maintaining a sustainable environment. However, to facilitate the good use of chemicals, their risks need to be understood