The European Commission plans to draft its proposed fast-track restriction of 286 carcinogenic, mutagenic, reprotoxic (CMR) substances in consumer textiles in two phases.
A document describing the Commission’s approach was discussed during the closed session at last week’s meeting of Competent Authorities for REACH and CLP (Caracal).

The first phase will limit the scope of the restriction to articles that may come into direct contact with the skin. This will mean that only proposed substances which are most relevant for such articles will be included.

Such articles include clothing, footwear and interior textiles articles, such as bed-linen, that may come into direct and prolonged contact with the skin.

Clothing accessories, such as buttons or zippers, interior textiles with no or infrequent contact with skin and footwear made of real leather will be excluded.

A wider scope of articles and inclusion of additional CMRs will be considered in a second phase.

These may include:
l floor coverings:
l carpets:
l upholstery:
l clothing accessories; and
l leather articles.

The two phases will go through the fast track process - Article 68(2) of REACH – separately. This means the REACH restricted substances list – Annex XVII – will be amended, and substances identified for the first phase will be included in a specific appendix. The same process will then apply to the substances identified for the second phase.

The fast track process still requires the assistance of the REACH Committee in determining which substances to restrict. However, substances that meet CMR category 1 and 2 criteria bypass further steps of the process, such as preparation of a restriction dossier and Opinions from Echa's Risk Assessment and Socio-economic Analysis Committees (Rac and Seac).

Substances
The Commission will establish four lists of 1A and 1B CMR substances to restrict in the first and second phases. These will be split into substances that are:
l potentially present in clothing and are relevant for the restriction;
l not present in clothing;
l less likely to be present in clothing, or less likely to be released, to be further assessed in a second phase; and
l substances that were not present in the initial list, but suggested during the public consultation, also to be further assessed in a second phase.

Substances that will not be considered in the first phase will be those that are:
l only present in accessories;
l not released from articles;
l petroleum and coal stream derivatives; and
l substances that might be present only as impurities at levels below detection limits.

In addition, it proposes two types of limit values: those that are technologically and analytically feasible for substances that can be eliminated from the articles; and those based on hazard, such as CLP specific limit values or Dnels, and/or the lowest "achievable concentration" for substances that cannot be eliminated.

Before finalising the restriction, the Commission intends to consult Echa's Enforcement Forum on the scope and wording of the restriction, on the availability of testing methods and on the enforceability of the conditions. It will also consult the agency on the specific concentration limits of some substances, and a group of experts on the scope and on the limit values, by organising a technical workshop.

It will additionally launch a second, shorter public consultation on the draft amendment of Annex XVII before the proposal is discussed in the REACH Committee.

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