EU: A RoHS Regulation instead of RoHS Directive?

 

The EU Commission has launched a public consultation regarding a review of the EU rules for the restriction of the use of hazardous substances in electronics.

EU legislation restricting the use of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) has been in place since 2003, firstly through Directive 2002/95/EC, followed by the current Directive 2011/65/EU (RoHS Directive). The Directive, which currently restricts the use of 10 hazardous substances in EEE, complements Directive 2012/19/EU on Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) and addresses hazardous substances in EEE, in particular with regard to related waste management challenges and related workers’ protection.

By restricting the use of such substances, the Directive aims to enable cleaner material cycles and environmentally sound waste treatment of EEE, thus contributing to the circular economy and the protection of human health and the environment. It also aims to ensure the functioning of the EU market in a highly globalized sector, avoiding distortions of competition that might arise from differing product requirements. The Directive has inspired similar laws in around 50 other jurisdictions around the world.

The Directive is part of the new legislative framework for industrial products in the EU, i.e. it establishes procedures for assessing the conformity of EEE and sets, among other things, an obligation to affix the CE marking.

The assessment and consultations undertaken as part of the RoHS Directive’s evaluation process indicated that the Directive contributes to reaching the objective of reducing the use of hazardous substances in EEE.   However, the evaluation also identified a range of issues with the practical operation of the Directive and some systemic issues, pointing in particular to the high administrative burden and complexity of provisions and processes in place.

Therefore, several options are being considered to improve the RoHS framework in the EU:

• Maintain the RoHS Directive as it stands and introduce certain non-legislative (‘soft’) measures, such as an update of the RoHS FAQ document. This would include explaining the interaction with other legislation such as the REACH Regulation and the Ecodesign Directive.
• Simplify and clarify the RoHS Directive by introducing and revising legislative (‘hard’) measures and soft measures to: (i) clarify and improve the exemption criteria and process; (ii) clarify and improve the substance restrictions trigger, criteria and process; (iii) ensure coherence with other legislation, primarily REACH and Ecodesign; and (iv) improve implementation and enforcement. This option may consider among others: Reforming the exemption process, Reforming the substance restriction provisions, Entrusting the exemption and substance restriction assessments to an existing EU agency (European Chemicals Agency (ECHA)), Reforming the provisions for spare parts, Updating and clarifying the scope of the RoHS Directive.
• Transform the RoHS Directive into a regulation, to simplify application and reduce unnecessary regulatory burden related to differing transposition in different Member States.
• Repeal the RoHS Directive and incorporate its provisions into the REACH Regulation.
• Repeal the RoHS Directive and address product requirements related to the environmentally sound recovery and disposal of electrical and electronic waste under sustainable products legislation.

Do not hesitate to contact us to find out more about the EU RoHS Directive and the CE conformity assessment system in the context of the use of hazardous substances in EEE.