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Press Release from The European Commission DG XI, Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection,
The European Commission has adopted a proposal for a Regulation on detergents. The proposal aims to increase the protection of the aquatic environment against the harmful effects of certain substances (surfactants) designed to reduce surface tension of liquid to allow it to better penetrate solids. The provision of information for the protection of consumer health is also improved. The proposed Regulation modernizes and substantially extends the scope of five existing Directives, all of which concern the biodegradability of detergent surfactants, and of one Commission Recommendation on the labelling of detergents. For the first time, a Regulation will be used for detergents to ensure the uniform application of detailed technical requirements in the Member States, and to facilitate subsequent amendments that will be required to keep up with developing scientific knowledge on surfactants.
The aims
The basic aim of the EU policy on detergents remains unchanged. It is to safeguard the Internal Market in detergents while ensuring a high level of protection of the environment. The focus of environmental concern in the past was to prevent foaming in rivers caused by surfactants, a key substance used in detergents. While this has largely been achieved, the proposed Regulation modernizes and substantially extends the scope of the existing five Directives, all of which concern the biodegradability of detergent surfactants.
What is new
New provisions are included to better protect the aquatic environment by stricter testing methods which now test the ultimate rather than the primary biodegradability of detergent surfactants. The scope is also widened to include all types of detergent surfactants, whereas previously surfactants used respectively as fabric softeners and in dishwashing products, which account for about 10% of detergent surfactants, were excluded through a lack of agreed testing methods. The supply of information on the content of detergent and cleaning products becomes mandatory, and new labelling measures are foreseen for certain detergent ingredients which can cause allergies.
Why a regulation is replacing directives
The choice of a regulation as the legislative instrument is justified by the fact that the harmonisation of detailed technical standards requires uniform application in the Member States. Furthermore, the legislative instrument is likely to be amended in the future to keep up with the constant development of scientific knowledge in the field of surfactants. The use of a regulation means that the lengthy implementation procedure imposed on each Member State by directives, and the repetition of this each time there are technical amendments, will no longer be necessary.
The benefits
The text of the proposed Regulation can be found at:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/enterprise/chemicals/detergents/index.htm
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