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UK Chemicals Stakeholder Forum (CSF)

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. Why has the UK Chemicals Stakeholder Forum published a list of chemicals?

A1.The Forum believes that these are chemicals potentially of concern for the environment or human health. It has published a list to make its concerns more widely known and to encourage industry to bring forward more information about these chemicals. This information could either allay the concerns raised or help address any risks.

The list is published as a consultative exercise to invite companies to come forward with further information and, if they wish, to query inclusion of specific chemicals on the list. As such, the list is a dynamic document, from which chemicals can be removed.

The Forum acknowledges that chemicals also bring many benefits to society. Some, such as flame-retardants are used to protect us from serious risks like fire, others are used to make everyday objects and materials, such as tyres or paint, more reliable, effective and cheaper.

Q2. What is the UK Chemicals Stakeholder Forum going to do with the list?

A2.The main purpose is to encourage industry to bring forward information about these chemicals and to bring to public attention chemicals of concern. This further information from industry might allay these concerns or provide help in addressing the concerns. The list of chemicals will be drawn to the attention of manufacturers, downstream users and retailers and is publicly available on this website. The Forum hopes that producers will take responsibility for informing their customers who use the chemicals about these concerns, and encourage these downstream users to work with them to address the potential risks.

Q3. What is the Government's view of the list?

A3. Ministers have welcomed the publication of the Forum's list of chemicals of concern but have not adopted the list or taken a view of its accuracy. They share the Forum's belief that it will encourage producers and industrial users of these chemicals to gather and share information, and stimulate industry and retailers to consider alternatives. The Government also believes that the list is of interest to the wider public. The list is based on hazard data only. As such, the risks from many of these chemicals have not been assessed, a point which the Government has asked the Forum to make clear.

Q4. What is the Government doing about these chemicals?

A4. The Government is very active in seeking to address these concerns at EU level through the Existing Substances Regulations, and in the future through REACH, but recognise that progress is slow. This is why the Government set up the UK Chemicals Stakeholder Forum to seek faster, voluntary action to address these concerns. The Government is broadly supportive of the approach the Forum is taking.

Q5. Is this a final list or will it change?

A5. The Forum's list should be regarded as a statement of work in progress, a consultative and dynamic document, rather than a list of substances proven to be a risk to the environment or human health.

The list is regularly reviewed and updated every quarter. We keep a record of chemicals that were originally included but which have been removed for one of the following reasons:

a) the chemical is no longer produced or used in the UK, or only in low volumes;

b) further information has shown that the chemical does not in fact meet the Forum's persistence, bioaccumulation and toxicity (PBT) criteria - a decision to remove a chemical for this reason will be informed by expert advice from the Environment Agency and the Advisory Committee on Hazardous Substances. The Forum will need to consider the expert advice but make decisions itself.

c) the production and use of the chemical is regulated by one or more of the following legislative regimes and it is not used in the UK for any use not covered by these regulations:

    • Pesticides (The Plant Protection Products Regulations 1995 (PPPR), Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986, Part III of the Food and Environmental Protection Act 1985)
    • Biocides (Biocidal Products Directive 2001)
    • Food Contact Plastics Directive
    • Pharmaceuticals and medicines - under the Medicines Act 1968, although these regulations do not cover risks for the environment so a pharmaceutical will stay on the list if there are environmental concerns
    • Veterinary Medicines under the Medicines Act 1968
Q6. How does the UK Chemicals Stakeholder Forum list relate to other lists of hazardous chemicals?

A6. The Forum's list has been developed as described above to cover chemicals that are particularly relevant to the UK situation and which are produced intentionally (not as waste products). Chemicals policy is still developing internationally and other organisations and countries have drawn up or are collating their own lists. Ideally the Forum would one day like to see a much simpler set of lists or a single list.

Q7. Will chemicals on the list be banned?

A7. The presence of a chemical on the Forum's list does not mean it has been, nor does it imply that it will be banned or restricted. The UK Chemicals Stakeholder Forum is an advisory body and does not possess statutory powers to restrict or ban chemicals.

Through publishing the list, the Forum is inviting industry to come forward with further data on the properties of their chemicals and their potential for environmental exposure. Companies should also consider whether they could take voluntary action now to reduce the potential risks.

The Forum is discussing what steps, if any, it might want to take in relation to those chemicals on the list which the Forum considers pose unacceptable risks to the environment or human health via the environment.

Q8. What are the consequences if industry is prevented from using certain chemicals?

A8. Chemicals bring wider benefits to society (eg preventing deaths through use of flame retardants) and making life safer or easier for many people. Even though we do not think of them as chemicals nearly all of the products we use everyday at home and at work have been made using man-made chemicals.

Whenever a decision to restrict the use of a chemical is taken by national governments or at EU level it is necessary to weigh up the benefits arising from the use of the chemical against the risks posed to the environment and human health. Benefits include the jobs of those working in the chemical industry, and the much wider set of industries that are dependent on chemicals (eg electronics industry).

Sometimes it is possible to substitute one chemical with safer alternative(s). However this is not always possible, not least because we may know little about the safety of the possible alternative(s). It is sometimes possible to find alternative processes or products that do not require industrial chemicals at all.

Any decision about phasing out chemicals is likely to involve some difficult choices about balancing risks to the environment and human health with the social and economic benefits of chemicals.

Q9. What should I do if a chemical I manufacture or supply appears on the list?

A9. You are invited to provide more information or query inclusion of the chemical on the list. To do this you should send a completed query proforma and supporting information to the UK Chemicals Stakeholder Forum Secretariat at Defra.

You can email your answers to the questions on the proforma direct to chemicals.strategy@defra.gsi.gov.uk. Or fax and postal address details are provided in the advice which accompanies the proforma.

The proforma also provides information on how queries about the inclusion of specific chemicals will be handled. Please also send links to any web based information on the chemical and action taken to address risk from that chemical, so the links can be added to this site.

Q10. What do I do if my company uses one of the chemicals on the list?

A10. You should contact your supplier to let them know the chemical is on the Forum's list and ask them what they are doing as a result. You are invited to provide more information or query inclusion of the chemical on the list. To do this you should send a completed query proforma (71 KB) and supporting information to the UK Chemicals Stakeholder Forum Secretariat at Defra.

Q11. How can I correct information contained in the list that I think is inaccurate?

A11. Screening exercises can be misleading even though they may be performed accurately. The list was drawn up on the basis of information provided by manufacturers and suppliers of these chemicals but it is possible that new information is now available or use patterns have changed. A proper appraisal can only be made by a thorough investigation of original data for each substance. The current list should not, therefore, be considered to be definitive in every case. If inaccuracies are noticed then these should be brought to the attention of the Forum.

You are invited to provide more information or query inclusion of the chemical on the list. To do this you should send a completed query proforma (71 KB) and supporting information to the UK Chemicals Stakeholder Forum Secretariat at Defra.

Q12. What is industry doing about the chemicals on the list?

A12. The chemical industry is represented on the UK Chemicals Stakeholder Forum and plays an important and positive role. It also has its own programmes to encourage producers, suppliers and users of chemicals to take a responsible approach to identifying and reducing hazards and risk to human health and the environment. This is a significant and important task since there is little publicly available data on which to judge whether or not the majority of chemicals produced in high volumes are safe.

Through publishing the list the Forum is inviting industry as a whole to think about these chemicals and make public more information about them (eg persistence, bioaccumulation and toxicity (PBT) and exposure data), on a voluntary basis. The UK Chemicals Stakeholder Forum is looking at some chemicals in detail and may recommend action as a result of this. This may be by entering the chemical into the ICCA programme or by making the data available to the Forum for consideration by the Advisory Committee on Hazardous Substances.

Q13. What should I do if I am concerned about the possible or actual presence of these chemicals in things I buy?

A13. The chemicals on the list are of concern but their presence on the list does not mean that they are necessarily dangerous for your health or the environment.

Some retailers have introduced strategies for identifying chemicals of concern and phasing them out of the products they sell, and green groups have been campaigning on this issue too.

Q14. What should I do if I find that a product my colleagues or I use at work contains one of these chemicals?

A14. Any advice on packaging about the safe handling, use or disposal of the product should be carefully followed.

The chemicals on the list are of concern but their presence on the list does not mean that they are necessarily dangerous for your health or the environment. It is difficult to accurately predict the risks of exposure, particularly for chemicals that can build up in our bodies.

Some of the chemicals on the list may be ones that you use at work and you may be concerned about the effect it may be having on you or your colleagues' health. If you are concerned you should tell your employer. Your employer has a legal duty under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations to carry out an assessment of the risks to your health. Your employer is also required to put in place suitable measures that will control your exposure to harmful substances.

HSE has developed a free Internet-based electronic tool to help employers to do this.

 

Page last modified: 1 August 2007
Page published 4 December 2002

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs