RoHS 28 Months Later
A full 28 months after the RoHS directive went into force in July of 2006, it is on the brink of substantial change. Unmet WEEE collection targets, persistent confusion about scope, inconsistent implementation across EU member states and the impact of REACH are all motivations for the proposed changes.
Changes to both RoHS and WEEE have been proposed. The WEEE Impact Assessment summary states two major motivations for change: under-reporting of collected WEEE and unnecessary costs due to inefficiency. For RoHS the stated motivations are: an improved regulatory environment and adaptation of the directive. This analysis article focuses on the RoHS proposals.
The scope of RoHS has been expanded to include medical devices as well as monitoring and control instruments. The application of the expanded scope will be staged to reduce financial impact on the affected enterprises.
Changes in scope are defined by article 2 plus annexes I and II. The new wording in article 2 clearly states that the true scope is defined by the category and product lists in the annexes. It also breaks the link to the WEEE directive so that the RoHS directive stands more firmly on its own. The general exemptions for the military and certain industrial applications are also more clearly defined.
Annex I lists 10 categories of products that are covered by RoHS. Medical devices and industrial monitoring and control equipment are now firmly on the list. Annex II is a far more specific list of types of products. The list is still heavily slanted toward consumer products and it now includes a number of industrial products previously excluded. Essentially, the list was copied from WEEE Annex IB with a few additions and alterations.
There is one simple lesson to take away here. Avoiding compliance by invoking an exemption is no longer just risky; it is now prohibited. As before, the best advice is to comply early, comply often, and exceed expectations.
The absence of a RoHS compliance mark has been resolved. Instead of creating a new mark, RoHS compliance is now included under the CE mark. So if you apply the CE mark to your products now, each product must also be RoHS compliant. Part of the CE process is completing a declaration of conformity. RoHS has just been added as one of the conditions that triggers the CE marking process.
Four more substances are being considered for the banned list:
HBCD is another halogenated hydrocarbon. It is a flame retardant that is most notably used in foam insulation products. The other three are phthalates, a class of chemicals that have a number of environmental problems. All four are considered to be persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and as a group have biological effects that include liver damage, endocrine system disruption, developmental defects and reproductive system defects.
DEHP, BBP and DBP are plasticizers commonly used in PVC. These chemicals have been in the news frequently the last few years, and seldom in a good way. Phthalates have numerous direct, harmful biological effects and are suspected to have synergistic effects on other, more harmful chemicals.
Note that PVC is also an EU target for elimination in the long-term. Its need for phthalate plasticizers is one of the reasons PVC has been targeted, in addition to the acute toxicity of the vinyl chloride monomer. In 1999, the EU banned the sale of phthalate-containing, soft PVC children's toys.
Additional Resources
Change Proposal Documents for RoHS and WEEE on the Europa WEEE page
HBCDD paper identifies 16 stereoisomers and notes its status as a bio-accumulating POP and endocrine disruptor
Soft PC Toy Ban - Europa site
