Industry contends ECHA determination must consider and properly assess all available information
WASHINGTON, BRUSSELS AND TOKYO (November 1, 2018) –The Global Silicones Council (GSC) has filed a legal action in response to the European Chemicals Agency’s (ECHA) June 2018 decision to include three silicone substances – D4, D5, and D6 – in the candidate list as Substances of Very High Concern (SVHC). By filing this action, GSC seeks to ensure that the REACH criteria are lawfully applied to these substances.
The GSC contends that, in designating D4, D5, and D6 as SVHCs, ECHA did not consider and properly assess all available evidence demonstrating that these substances do not meet the REACH criteria for PBT or vPvB substances. The GSC also contends that the ECHA decision to identify D4, D5 and D6 as SVHCs violates the principle of proportionality by recommending a regulatory action that far exceeds the risks linked to the use of these substances.
“The Global Silicones Council has long maintained that D4, D5, and D6 are safe for the environment based on the abundance of available scientific data on the materials,” said Karluss Thomas, Executive Director of the GSC. “This position is supported by governmental authorities – such as Australia and Canada – that have evaluated all of the available evidence on D4, D5, and D6 and have chosen not to impose any restrictions on the use of these substances in commerce. In addition to considering laboratory derived data, regulators outside of Europe considered newer, more accurate and more relevant real-world data that show that these substances do not build up in the food chain.” The GSC is working with regulators around the world to ensure that all available scientific data is utilized when evaluating the safety of these materials.
D4, D5, and D6 are critical building blocks used to produce a wide range of silicone polymers which provide unique product performance characteristics that engender innovation in thousands of products that benefit key segments of the global economy, including: transportation, building and construction, health care, alternative energy technologies, and electronics. In these sectors, there are few, if any, satisfactory substitutes to silicone polymers.