Thoughts on the recent decision made concerning deca-BDE (decabromodiphenyl ether) “in polymeric applications”. Here is some further background to the ruling.
The European Court has decided to annul this exemption in a case brought by the European Parliament and Denmark (supported by Portugal, Finland, Sweden and Norway) against the European Commission (supported by the UK).
The current exemption will apply until the 30th of June 2008. Therefore the exemption known as 9a ends on that date.
The Court’s decision was procedural rather than technical and it does not concern the case for banning deca-BDE based on scientific grounds.
Deca-BDE, a very effective and low-cost flame retardant, is widely used in electrical and electronic equipment. Many of the alternatives have not been fully tested so the risks are unknown, unlike deca-BDE.
While not all plastic in electrical equipment contain flame retardants they are frequently used in mains powered IT and telecom equipment for example.
Choosing a “safe” flame retardant which can be guaranteed not to pose future risk is virtually impossible. The general lack of data (to be addressed by the REACH Regulations) makes it impossible to determine, with any degree of certainty, if the negative impact on health and the environment caused by alternatives outweigh the benefits of deca-BDE.
Directive Decoder
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