REACH & the Issue of Chemical Substances Present in Apparel/Garments Compliance Obligation on Exporters Dr. Rashmi Naidu Sr. General Manager (Technical Services) REACH Support, INDIA

About REACH Support Most sought after, one of its kind helpdesk in India Clientele spread across Asia, Europe and growing steadily to other places Caters to over 800 companies presently Entire basket of REACH compliance services offered Providing Assessment & Certification services to various article exporters Professionals comprise of experts who have been following REACH regulation since the draft stages

Contents REACH in a nutshell Articles within REACH REACH – Accessories and Embellishments Is packaging an article? SVHC & Restricted Substances (Annex XVII of the REACH regulation) REACH requirement for substances in article Notification obligation & Notification deadlines Communication Obligation How to calculate the SVHC thresholds within REACH Importance of supply chain communication

REACH – In a nutshell REACH - Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals This regulation requires information to be submitted to the European chemical agency (ECHA) on the properties of chemicals (exported as such) as well as chemicals contained in articles For exporters of chemicals, the major compliance process is REGISTRATION For exporters of articles, the compliance process is NOTIFICATION (though not in each case)

Articles within REACH Definition “an object which during production is given a special shape, surface or design which determines its function to a greater degree than its chemical composition” Apparel/garments are considered as articles within REACH as they come in various shapes & design imparting various functionalities

REACH - Accessories & Embellishments Accessories include a variety of articles like Buttons, Zippers & Zippers Sliders, Rivets, Buckles, Beads, Cuff Links, etc Embellishments include Flat metal embellishments, hand beaded brooch, rhinestone embellishment, crystal brad, etc If accessories and embellishments are exported as such to Europe, they will be treated individually as articles Accordingly other REACH obligations also have to be complied with

Is PACKAGING an article? YES The apparel can be packaged in cardboard boxes, plastic bags, paper, etc. Packaging is considered as a separate article within REACH Exporters also have obligation to check for SVHC and restricted chemicals in packaging Important to check the chemical used like paints, etc used to mark the packaging If an SVHC is present, the obligations for the packaging would be the same as for the apparel However, if the packaging ends up as waste in Europe, no separate obligation exists for the packaging

Substances of very high concern (SVHC)

What are SVHC Substances of very high concern are: PBT substances vPvB substances CMR category 1, 2 substances Substances of equivalent concern (having endocrine disrupting properties) In a nutshell, substances very toxic to the human health and environment shall be categorized as SVHC

SVHC & Restricted Substances (Annex XVII) of REACH ECHA has finalized 53 SVHC till date The complete list can be found at / Annex XVII (52 substances & in some cases category of substances (Phthalates, PAHs, CMR substances in Annex I of EC/67/548) Restrictions on the Manufacture, Placing on the Market and Use of Certain Dangerous Substances, Preparations and Articles Name & category of chemicals Conditions of Restriction Annex XVII entry into effect from June ‘ 2009

REACH Requirements for Substances in Article There are essentially three requirements 1. Pre-registration & Registration of chemical released intentionally from the article during normal or foreseeable conditions of use provided: Release is intentional (e.g. – perfume from the shirts) Intentional release – Deliberate and contributes to an added value of the article Chemical (which is released) is present in greater than one ton* in the export consignment (per annum) The substance has not been registered for that use

Examples of intentional release from apparel Socks – Antibacterial chemical released upon contact with body to avoid “smelly” socks Perfumed Shirts – Fragrance chemicals added to provide freshness Inner wear – Softners added specially in baby inner wear to avoid rashes to the delicate skin Pre-registration/registration seem highly unlikely for the majority of the apparel exporters, except for similar cases as above.

REACH Requirements for Substances in Article (Contd..) 2. Notification of SVHC if: SVHC is greater than 0.1% wt by wt (1000 ppm) and tonnage of SVHC exceeds 1 ton per annum in the annual exports of apparel to Europe 3. Communication of SVHC if: SVHC is greater than 0.1% wt by wt (1000 ppm) in article but less than 1 ton per annum Apparel exporters need to confirm Notification or Communication obligations based upon a technical assessment of the chemical used in their entire production chain

Notification Requirements to the ECHA The information to be notified includes the following: The identity and contact details of the producer of article The registration number (s) for the SVHC, if available The identity of the SVHC (s) like name of the substance, CAS, EINECS No, etc The classification of the SVHC, which will be available from the Agency A brief description of the use (s) of the SVHC in the article and of the uses of the article (s) The tonnage range of the SVHC, i.e tonnes, tonnes etc.

Notification Deadlines For substances included in the SVHC list before 1 December 2010, the notifications have to be submitted not later than 1 June 2011 If Notification applies but has not been done, it is mandatory to complete the Notification before exporting article to avoid penalties For substances included in the SVHC list on or after 1 December 2010, the notifications have to be submitted no later than 6 months after the inclusion in candidate list

Communication Requirements to the ECHA The recipient of the article with sufficient information to allow safe use of the article including, as a minimum, the name of the substance”  Only for SVHC on the ‘Candidate List’  No tonnage limit (i.e. also applies below 1 ton/year) REACH Article 33(2) Consumers can request the same information. The information should be provided within 45 days, free of charge.

How to calculate the SVHC thresholds (EXAMPLE) Intentional Release Consider a baby innerwear containing chemical lotion Wt of 1 inner wear100 gm Wt of chemical in this inner wear10 gm Amount of chemical that shall be intentionally released06 gm Inner wear pieces exported to Europe (1 calendar year)10,000 Total wt of the annual export10,00,000 gm (1000 kg) Total quantity that shall be intentionally released 60 kg Intentional release quantity less than 1000 kg or 1 ton. Thus NO PRE-REGISTRATION & REGISTRATION obligation of the exporter of this innerwear

How to calculate the SVHC thresholds (EXAMPLE) No Intentional release but SVHC present Consider a ladies top containing Cobalt dichloride, an SVHC used as mordant dye Wt of 1 ladies top300 gm Wt of chemical in this ladies top20 gm %wt/wt6.66%wt/wt Ladies top exported to Europe (1 calendar year)10,000 pieces Total wt of the annual export30,00,000 gm (3000 kg) Total quantity of chemical in the annual export200 kg Thus NO NOTIFICATION obligation (since total quantity is less than 1 ton per annum) but obligation of COMMUNICATION since %wt/wt exceeds 0.1% (6.6%)

Some restricted substances in textile Tris (2,3 dibromopropyl) phosphate (CAS No ) - Shall not be used in textile articles, such as garments, undergarments and linen, intended to come into contact with the skin. Tris(aziridinyl)phosphinoxide (CAS No ) - Shall not be used in textile articles, such as garments, undergarments and linen, intended to come into contact with the skin. Nickel (CAS No ) and its compounds - rivet buttons, tighteners, rivets, zippers and metal marks, when these are used in garments Azocolourants - above 30 ppm in the finished articles clothing, bedding, towels and nappies

REACH - Accessories & Embellishments Accessories include a variety of articles like Buttons, Zippers & Zippers Sliders, Rivets, Buckles, Beads, Cuff Links, etc Embellishments include Flat metal embellishments, hand beaded brooch, rhinestone embellishment, crystal brad, etc If accessories and embellishments are exported as such to Europe, they will be treated individually as articles Accordingly other REACH obligations also have to be complied with

Importance of supply chain communication If the entire production chain is in-house, get the supply chain inventorized for all chemical inputs If certain operations like dyeing/printing are outsourced, ask for the details of the chemicals used in these operations and make a note of the same For the accessories and embellishments used in the apparel, ask the suppliers for the raw materials used in their production If the suppliers cite confidentiality as the reason for not sharing the details, share with them the SVHC list & request them to give you an undertaking that none of the SVHC is used PLEASE REMEMBER – It is very important to get the entire supply chain scanned for the chemicals used during production of the export article (finished and packed apparel)

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