Swedish chemicals agency, Kemi, is calling for an EU-wide regulation on hazardous chemicals in textile products. In a report, assigned by the Swedish Government, the agency sets out its proposals for the product-specific regulations.
The Swedish Chemicals Agency report says that the Swedish Government should ‘initiate the development’ of a textiles-specific EU regulation.
The regulation would go beyond restricting – for use in textiles consumer articles – the list of Category 1 carcinogenic, mutagenic and reprotoxic (CMR) substances, proposed for restriction by the European Commission, Echa and member state competent authorities in October (CW 27 October 2015).
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Kemi’s report suggests that it should cover ‘identified textile-relevant substances’ with hazardous properties, including substances which are endocrine-disrupting, allergenic and harmful to the environment as well as CMRs. This step, Kemi says, would ‘impose uniform requirements on the dangerous chemicals, which need to be regulated’ and on the distribution of relevant information in the supply chain.
In order to gain support from the European Commission and member states, Kemi states that the Swedish Government should raise the proposal in ‘relevant contexts and forums’ such as the Commission’s regulatory fitness and performance programme (Refit) and the seventh EU Environment Action Programme, covering 2015-20.
Kemi opines, that the regulations that address hazardous chemicals in textiles – such as substance restrictions under REACH and those on occupational health and safety – are ‘fragmented’. The voluntary initiatives that are in place – such as the EU Ecolabel and the OEKO-TEX standard for textiles – cover different substances and have different threshold value sets.
Kemi will also investigate introducing additional EU restrictions on AZO dyes, which does not come under the purview of REACH. It mentions, “We intend to draw up recommendations for restrictions, if the necessary conditions for their implementation are in place, such as support from member states.”
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