Q2 Global RoHS Updates: There’s No Constant Like Change

Change is Coming to European Union REACH and RoHS Rules

As I write this there are three – yes, three – open public comment periods for regulations that electronics manufacturers, their supply chains and a whole host of other stakeholders should be interested in, and perhaps either excited or terrified by:

REACH Regulations – specifically, public consultation on the targeted revision of the REACH Regulation ((EC) 1907/2006 concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals). The European Commission says: “The Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability recognizes the need for a targeted revision of REACH to achieve its objectives by addressing a number of problems that have been identified.” They include:

• Revision of registration requirements (the “R” in REACH)
• Communication challenges in the supply chain
• Revision of the provisions for substance evaluation (the “E” in REACH)
• Reforming the authorization process (the “A” in REACH; this presumably includes the candidate list of substances of very high concern, or SVHCs, as that is the list of substances informing the authorization process)
• Reforming the restriction process (the missing second “R” in “REARCH”)

Considering the title of the regulation, this indicates that the entire scope of REACH is up for potential revision: the result is a very broad, rather than “targeted,” revision of the regulation. As well it should be: there are numerous issues, not the least of which is the impact of the late addition of Article 33 to the REACH regulation.

This was never opened for public consultation and results in an instantaneous disclosure requirement when new substances are added to the candidate list of SVHCs. Every six months the entirety of the manufacturing industry is put squarely behind the proverbial eight-ball.

This consultation may be closed by the time this column is published, as it opened on January 10 and is expected to close in mid-April.

The run-up to the next RoHS recast – which, as I will persist in noting, will be known as “RoHS 3” – has been long and delayed. But now we are finally in the midst of a public consultation that was expected to occur last fall. As noted by numerous parties in the recently closed “Call for Evidence,” a significant change is required in exemption-related processes.

Many note that coherence – as required by Article 6 – with REACH and other regulations and selection of substances for restriction must also be considered a priority. While the Commission issued the “Common Understanding” the two regulations are expected to have in 2014, its implementation is imperfect.

Another significant challenge is that, while REACH uses the “evaluation” process to select substances for possible regulatory actions, RoHS only has a draft “Revised Manual Methodology for Identification and Assessment of Substances for Inclusion in the List of Restricted Substances (Annex II) under the RoHS 2 Directive”. While over 2½ years old, we have yet to hear from the Commission on whether this will, in fact, be finalized.

Numerous other issues exist with RoHS, and your voice is important. The consultation is open for feedback for a 12-week period, until June 2, 2022.

The Sustainable Products Initiative has an open consultation period open now through May 29 covering nearly 700 total pages of regulatory proposal recasting and replacing the EcoDesign Framework Directive (2009/125/EC) and several impact assessment reports. This includes

• Replacing Directive 2009/125/EC with a Regulation
• Broadening the scope of the EcoDesign framework “both in terms of products and new kinds of requirements”
• Review 33 Commission regulations (presumably the current implementing measures) and adopt Five new measures (in addition to numerous new delegated, or amending, acts)

Finally, note that 

• The draft Battery Regulation, which results in a broad range of significant changes to the Battery Directive (2006/66/EC) it replaces, is finally on the move again
• A plan is in place to recast the WEEE Directive in 2023, starting with a Call for Evidence in the near future and a public consultation this fall
• Last year “the European Parliament reiterated the objective to make all packaging reusable or recyclable in an economically viable way by 2030 and called on the Commission to present a legislative proposal without delay”

Bottom line: In the next couple years the EU is going to significantly revise a broad range of environmental regulatory requirements that impact how the electronics industry and its supply chain function. Sustainability is woven deeply into each of these initiatives as the European Green Deal and the Circular Economy Action Plan (esp. section 3.1 on electronics) are, to greater or lesser degrees, their fundamental drivers.

This “brave new world” will require every manufacturer throughout the electronics industry (and many others) to dedicate significant attention and resources in order to keep on top of, interpret and translate these regulations into implementations and business processes.

China to Add Phthalates to RoHS

Last month, the MIIT (Ministry of Industry and Information Technology) China RoHS Standard Working Group Secretariat announced the kick-off of a process that would result in the addition of the same four phthalates that are currently included in the EU RoHS Directive 2011/65/EU Annex II list of restricted substances: DEHP, BBP, DBP and DIBP. Two voluntary standards, made mandatory by their inclusion in the China RoHS regimen, will be updated as part of the process:

• SJ/T 11364-2014: Marking for the restriction of the use of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic products
• GB/T 26572-2011: Requirements of concentration limits for certain restricted substances in electrical and electronic products

SJ/T 11364-2014 has been in a revision process since late 2019, and this process is expected to be completed soon. GB/T 26572-2011 is expected to be revised by the end of September. Watch for the proposed changes to be issued for comment through the WTO Technical Barriers to Trade Committee system.

Expect this to impact not only the general scope of China RoHS but also the initial catalog of EEPs subject to substance restriction. The timeline for that is unclear.

Saudi Arabia RoHS Update

Saudi Arabia has announced the expected delay in the in-force dates that various product categories must comply with in order to meet regulatory requirements. G/TBT/N/SAU/1166/Add.1 indicates the following revised timelines:

The Saudi Standards, Metrology, and Quality Organization (SASO) has also produced a guidance document for the regulation. This identifies the regulated products and their HS codes as well as the process for the Conformity Assessment Procedure.

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