27/04/2005 - A new study
funded by the chemical industry and released
today shows that the proposed EU chemical
law, known as REACH, will not have a significant
impact on business costs or competitiveness
said WWF and the European Environmental Bureau
(EEB).
A study carried out by KPMG and paid for
by employers association UNICE and chemical
industry association CEFIC found:
• no loss (withdrawal) of important chemicals
due to registration costs;
• that registration costs are largely passed
on or absorbed by the supply chain;
• that product reformulations are not likely;
limited diversion of R&D spending; and
• potential loss of non-important substances
found at only one chemical importer (a sales
office importing Chinese-produced chemicals).
For the first time industry itself states
in the study that there are business benefits
from better information and risk management
as a result from REACH. This was despite a
flawed methodology, using up to four times
higher testing costs than the Commission estimates,
which led to WWF and the EEB withdrawing its
support for the study in July 2004.
"No matter how hard it tries, industry
cannot demonstrate that REACH is bad for business"
said Tony Long, Director of WWF’s European
Policy office. "The study does not even
show a problem for small businesses. Only
the contrary, better chemical regulation should
create new markets for safer chemicals. In
addition, the environmental and health benefits
of REACH will be extensive."
A second study, carried out by the European
Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) and
institute for Prospective Technological Studies
(ITPS) on the impact of REACH on New Member
States, concluded "The cost impacts on
the individual companies remain moderate,
even under the assumption of worst case effects."
"Some chemical companies want to avoid
a clear responsibility under REACH and their
associations will try to twist the findings
- but the facts speak a clear language: neither
low nor high volume important chemical were
found to be under threat, be it at big or
small companies" said Stefan Scheuer,
EU Policy Director of the EEB. "Politicians
who had reservations and awaited the results
should now be reassured and start working
on closing the environmental loopholes."
The chemical industry suffers from a lack
of public trust due to the absence of safety
information about chemicals in everyday use
– which also frustrates manufacturers and
retailers of products using chemicals. REACH
should offer much improved safety information
and the substitution of the most harmful chemicals
with safer alternatives.
