REACH 2018 seems far away but companies need to start preparing now. The last registration deadline for existing chemicals, 31 May 2018, concerns substances manufactured or imported in low volumes, between 1-100 tonnes per year. This means that a larger proportion of small and medium-sized enterprises will be registering for the first time and large...

ECHA’s website now provides detailed information on the import and export of certain very hazardous chemicals and pesticides which are subject to the Prior Informed Concern (PIC) Regulation. The new web pages contain over 10 years of regulatory information, reports and statistics that were previously made available in the European Database of Export and Import...

InterTradeIreland has urged SMEs to prepare for changes to the way in which public sector services are tendered in Ireland in terms of new category structures and centralised Government purchasing through the Office of Government Procurement (OGP). The OGP was established in January 2014 with a key objective to optimise value for money through smarter...

Two key steps in Ireland’s on-going implementation of the Water Framework Directive (WFD) have been announced. A consultation document on the Timetable and Work Programme for the development of the 2nd cycle of River Basin Management Plans. New Regulations have also been introduced which re-assign functional responsibility for WFD implementation to local authorities, to the Environmental Protection...

EU rules on the information provided with chemical products used in the construction sector do not need to be extended to include more information on hazardous ingredients, the European Commission has decided.  The Commission report has concluded that the declarations of performance (DOPs) introduced by the 2011 Construction Products Regulation (CPR) already contain sufficient provisions on...

There are many reasons why Sustainability is good for business, including opportunities for SMEs to benefit. Potential to increase profits,  eg. reducing energy usage, waste, raw material and transport which all correlate directly to reducing costs. Fulfil the demand for greener products and services. There is a growing demand among consumers for greener and safer products and people are...

The eGuide on safety data sheets an interactive online publication that aims to provide information on safety data sheets and exposure scenarios in a user friendly way. Its simple structure makes it suitable as both a training tool and reference tool to help employees use chemicals safely.  Some users may require a brief overview of the...

Non-compliance with environmental laws by member states was more than any other area of EU legislation in 2013, a European Commission report has indicated. A high proportion of EU infringement procedures related to the poor application of environment legislation. These figures include letters of formal notice and reasoned opinions, the two steps taken before a case reaches...

Danish brewing multinational Carlsberg has embarked on a major private sector initiative, involving many of its main suppliers, on the upcycling of beer cans, bottles and other packaging. Upcycling is the conversion of used materials into materials of equivalent or better quality. The Carlsberg initiative will address the need for greater resource efficiency and reuse...

The new ‘Blue Guide’ has been published.  It builds on the on the content of the Guide to the implementation of directives based on the New Approach and the Global Approach (the “Blue Guide”) published back in 2000, but reflects the modernisation brought to the legal framework in the past decade.  This new version of...