EuPC: Second Conference on REACH

Concerns of plastics converters, recyclers and compounders confirmed

On 14 December 2005, EuPC (European Plastics Converters, www.eupc.org) held its second conference on the future EU Regulation on REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restrictions of Chemicals).

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In his welcome statement Alexandre Dangis, EuPC Managing Director, said "Reach is now becoming a reality that the plastics industry will have to face in Europe." He furthermore commented that the consequences of this new EU Chemicals Regulation has not been sufficiently analysed from a plastics industry point of view. Compounders, recyclers and converters will have serious impediments to their business and this draft legislation still needs to be adapted.

This EuPC Conference was held shortly after the first reading in the EU Parliament and one day after the UK Presidency achieved Political Agreement in the European Council of Ministers.

Delegates from the plastics and plastics processing industries and public authorities including the EU Commission´s Head of the REACH UNIT and the UK Permanent representative before the EU Commercial Attaché faced and examined the most important EU legislative proposal of the past years.

Walter Claes, EuPC HSE Director and EuPC Reach expert insisted on the continuation of the work with EU legislators in order to ensure a workable Reach for industry even if substantial progress had been by the political compromise last night. He called upon the integrated plastics compounders and masterbatchers to join the work done at present by EuPC during this Practical Preparations phase in order to work towards the same goals. He also called upon all plastics converters to start drawing up a detailed inventory of all substances/preparations, volumes and suppliers in the processing of plastics in order to prepare for Reach in 2007.

The Conference, moderated by Tony Torreele of Solvay SA and EuPC HSE Committee Chairman, saw the contribution of the industry chain interested in identifying and discussing the possible consequences of REACH in the business. The debate that followed analysed the Regulation from a scientific, political, economical and legal perspective.

EuPC will be setting up a Helpdesk for SME´s in the course of 2006 in order to improve the knowledge about this new bible of the plastics and chemical industry.

European Plastics Converters, Brussels, Belgium

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