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IPC Issues Call to Action on RoHS
March 6, 2009 |Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
BANNOCKBURN, IL IPC Association Connecting Electronics Industries issued a call for assemblers and electronics companies creating products for the EU market to weigh in on the proposed changes to RoHS. Proposed revisions could make exemptions more difficult to obtain and add compliance requirements, such as eliminating TBBPA.
The Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (RoHS) Directive impacted every facet of the supply chain and forced the electronics industry to make enormous, expensive, and burdensome changes, forever transforming the electronics industry landscape.
The European Union (EU) is currently revising the RoHS directive and may restrict additional substances, create additional compliance requirements and make the exemption process even more difficult. Contact EU Council and Parliament officials now to prevent unwarranted RoHS regulations. Encourage EU officials to base their decisions on science and ensure that the final revised RoHS Directive does not restrict Tetrabromobisphenol-A (TBBPA), the flame retardant used in more than 80% of printed circuits.
If TBBPA is added to RoHS, the EU will be initiating a precedent of restricting a substance for political instead of scientific reasons, IPC states. The Okö Institut, private consultants hired by the EU Commission, identified TBBPA for possible restriction under RoHS. TBBPA has undergone a comprehensive EU risk assessment that determined it is safe for the environment and human health. Through the efforts of IPC and other industry representatives, the Commission was persuaded to keep TBBPA off of the list of substances for priority assessment under RoHS.
TBBPA may still be added to RoHS and become a restricted substance. The EU legislative procedure allows the Parliament and Council to propose amendments to RoHS, including restricting the use of critical substances used in electronics, such as TBBPA. IPC is urging the electronics industry to continue to adamantly oppose any recommendation to restrict TBBPA based on the fact that there is no science to support its restriction.
Industry involvement in the RoHS review is vital. Companies should aggressively lobby the EU Council and Parliament to base their decisions on science and ensure the final revised RoHS Directive does not add TBBPA. IPC suggests that companies educate EU officials on the issues and lay the groundwork before they decide their final position on the proposed RoHS revisions. When officials are able to understand the industry's issues, they are much more likely to vote with your concerns in mind, notes the IPC's statement.
For more information and analysis of the RoHS review, visit www.ipc.org/global-efforts. The site includes instruction on contacting EU officials and a sample letter for lobbying the appropriate politicians.
A special forum will be held to discuss the proposed RoHS revisions at the IPC European Electronics Industry Executive Summit in Berlin, Germany on April 27, 2009. www.ipc.org/berlin-meetings.