The CTAC authorisation project
The text voted in the REACH Committee regarding chromium trioxide and the authorisation of its CTAC uses provides for an end of authorisation on 21st September 2024. The Committee's favourable opinion concerns all CTAC uses, with the exception of use 3 (decorative hard chromium plating), which is still under evaluation.
The vote, which was taken on 21st October, was held following the written procedure launched by the European Commission on 30th September. The European Commission still has up to two months to make a formal decision. Once the decision has been definitively adopted, it will be officially notified to applicators. Downstream users who will be covered by this authorisation decision will have to notify their authorised use to ECHA and comply with the obligations arising from it.
Downstream users covered by functional chrome plating and surface treatment uses will more specifically be required to provide a clear explanation of the key functionalities of Chromium VI required for their use, together with a justification as to why these functionalities are necessary for their use.
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The context of the CTAC decision
The vote on the CTAC authorisation project had been suspended shortly before summer at the request of the European Commission, which wanted to vote on another similar decision first.
As a reminder, the CTAC decision was first voted on February 2019. However, a number of factors had an impact on this first decision:
- A legal entity change,
- A decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union cancelling an authorisation concerning lead chromate,
- A resolution of the European Parliament criticising the Commission's CTAC decision.
For these reasons, a new light had to be shed on the situation and the decision had to be reviewed.
Wish to know more about the REACH Authorisation process?
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