ChemRisk announces European REACH partnership

The requirements are being introduced under the new REACH legislation, which came into force in Europe last year, and will lead to tighter controls on the use of substances that are deemed to be potentially dangerous or toxic.

For US businesses, including many fine chemicals players serving the personal care industry, the legislation means that all chemical substances being imported into the EU must be pre-registered with the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA).

Registration deadline The EU has determined that chemicals manufacturers wishing to comply with REACH must pre-register with the ECHA between June 1 and November 30, 2008, or risk losing their ability to do business in the European market from the start of next year.

The ECHA estimates that during the course of the next 11 years manufacturers and importers are expected to register some 30,000 different chemical substances, illustrating the enormous scale of the program.

However, for US businesses, the registration must be entered using a legal entity in the EU, usually a third party known as an 'Only Representative' to ensure that compliance is met.

Participation is complicated US chemical players are keen to comply with the scheme, but many business operators have expressed concern as to the complicated process that the pre-registration entails, exacerbated by the third party requirement.

"REACH was enacted a year ago, but many enterprises have been slow to develop a strategy.

Now they've got six months to pre-register," said Spencer Williams, ChemRisk health scientists.

"Through our partnership with REACHLaw, ChemRisk can offer comprehensive compliance services that protect clients' confidential business information and their access to European markets."

ChemRisk says that its services in association with REACHLaw include pre-registration, supply chain communication and data gap analysis.