Belgium, Denmark and Norway have given further details of their plans to follow France by requiring companies to report information about their use of nanomaterials. The fact that other countries are already implementing such systems stretches the credibility of the Federal Government’s claim that the feasibility of implementing a similar system here is “questionable”. Sweden is also investigating whether it needs a national register and is due to report on its findings later this year.
Speaking to The Independent last week, Vito Buonsante, a lawyer at the environmental organisation Client Earth asserted “We need a compulsory product register of nanomaterials so we can see where they’re used…Workers are guinea pigs in this; we should have some surveillance of the medium and long-term effect on workers.”
From February this year Norway will require all companies with chemicals registered in the Norwegian Product Register to disclose if the chemical contains nanomaterials.
Denmark plans to introduce legislation that will establish a national database of products containing nanomaterials and require producers and importers of such products to report information to the government. The draft legislation was presented to the Danish Parliament on 29 November and if the proposals are approved the law should come into force on 1 September 2013.
Belgium also intends to introduce a national register similar to the system being introduced in France. An assessment of the scope of the draft legislation and an impact assessment will be conducted by a consultancy early this year before the proposals are submitted to Belgium’s three parliaments. If there is little political opposition, the law could come into force by December 2013.
Source: Chemical Watch
