(10/01/06) EP stapt naar rechter omdat Commissie ban gebromeerde vlamvertrager Deca-BDE wil lichten

• 2006-01-10

Van gebromeerde vlamvertragers (GVV) is geweten dat ze het het hormonaal stelsel beïnvloeden en ontwikkelingsstoornissen kunnen veroorzaken. Er moet dan ook uiterst omzichtig mee worden omgesprongen. Ze kunnen worden gebruikt in elektrische en elektronische apparatuur. Tegen 1 juli 2006 zou het gebruik van de GVV Deca-BDE moeten aflopen. Er bestaan voldoende andere alternatieven en het product is uiterst schadelijk. Tegen het advies van het Parlement in besliste de Commissie om de ban toch de lichten. De Groene Fractie reageert bij monde van het Zweedse EP-lid Carl Schlyter.

Brominated flame retardants
Legal action against Commission for lifting ban of a hazardous substance

The Greens/EFA welcomed the legal action taken by the European Parliament last week against the Commission Decision to lift the ban of the brominated flame retardant Deca-BDE in electrical and electronic equipment. Parliament had warned the Commission in a resolution adopted on 6 July 2005 that it would exceed its implementing powers with such a Decision. However, the Commission disregarded Parliament, which therefore took the consequence of seeking legal remedy at the European Court of Justice. On 2 January 2006, Denmark had already announced similar legal action.

Carl Schlyter , Swedish Member of the Environment Committee of the European Parliament, said:

"I am glad to see that the European Parliament will not tolerate that the Commission abuses its powers to lift the ban of a highly problematic substance that Parliament and Council adopted three years ago. Parliament as co-legislator could close down if the Commission were allowed to completely overturn decisions by the legislator via backdoor procedures. I call on manufacturers of electrical and electronic equipment to play it safe and to stop using Deca-BDE."

"The case for banning this substance is stronger than ever before: since 2003, DecaBDE has been found in top predators, in the Artic and in human breast milk. Tests have found it to be neurotoxic, and to degrade to even more toxic and bioaccumulative substances — all commercial uses of which have already been banned. The Commission's own scientific committee strongly recommended risk reduction measures, and the UK is in the process of reviewing the latest adverse findings. Any responsible manufacturer should follow the example of Dell, Sony and other companies and stop using DecaBDE in electrical and electronic devices now, rather than wait for the outcome of the legal proceedings."

NOTE

The ban had been adopted by Parliament and Council in January 2003 in Directive 2002/95/EC on the restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment (RoHS) and would have been effective as of 1 July 2006. However, this ban was lifted by the Commission via comitology procedures on 13 October 2005. On 30 November 2005, the Committee on Legal Affairs, upon request by the Environment committee, had recommended with unanimity, to initiate annulment proceedings at the European Court of Justice.

The Directive allows the Commission to exempt specific applications of the hazardous substances from the ban, but only when there are no viable safer alternatives for these applications. However, the Commission completely disregarded the wide availability of safer alternatives to DecaBDE since many years. Instead it suggested lifting the ban based on the allegation that consumers were at no risk. This not only disregards the highly worrying findings in the environmental risk assessment, but in particular that risk considerations cannot be used to exempt substances in comitology.