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Upcoming challenges: flame retardants. Stamatis Sivitos, 30.10.2013 UK SNS annual event. Outline. Background. IEC 62368/ 60065 and EN 60065 Amendment 11. Aims of this meeting. Background and update on current developments Call for your support Share information/ brainstorm
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Upcoming challenges: flame retardants Stamatis Sivitos, 30.10.2013 UK SNS annual event
Aims of this meeting • Background and update on current developments • Call for your support • Share information/ brainstorm • Need for coordinated approach – counteraction
“How eight TV fires spread across the world” Source: Chicago Tribune reporting
Use of statistics Source: Green Science Policy Institute, Berkeley, USA
Health and env. impacts Serious adverse health effects in experimental animals and accumulation in humans - documented in many hundreds of peer reviewed articles (Blum et al , 2008 – The Case against Candle Resistant Electronics)
Otherenv impacts • Plastic products containing FR are hard to recycle • Flame retarded plastic is either being incinerated, landfilled, or exported to developing countries
EU legislation • RoHS Directive & REACH Regulation: banned or restricted only a small fraction of the chemicals of concern • Complicated and long process via REACH • Applicable only in the EU => Regulatory framework not sufficient
Views of US organisations • Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) • National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) • Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) • Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) “potential risk was too low to justify the implementation of a candle flame ignition requirement”
The coalition (Blum et al , 2008 – The Case against Candle Resistant Electronics)
ECOS work • Alerted the relevant standardisation bodies (CENELEC & IEC) • Contacted the national members of IEC and CENELEC, providing the relevant scientific input • Raised awareness among env NGOs in the EU
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION! Mundo-B Rue d’Edimbourg 26, B-1050 Brussels, Belgium Direct line: + 32 2 894 46 56 stamatis.sivitos@ecostandard.org http://www.ecostandard.org
Environmental protection through standards • Highlight potential impact of standards being developed • Specific role of standards vs regulation for better environmental performance • How do they make a difference in day to day business operations