Ten years of the application of REACH and CLP – assessing the knowledge and implementation of these regulations by Polish users of chemicals
Background The aim of this work was to assess the awareness among both downstream users and distributors of chemicals in Poland, as regards legal regulations applicable to chemicals (i.e., the Regulation on Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals − REACH, and the Registr...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine
2019-07-01
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| Series: | Medycyna Pracy |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.journalssystem.com/medpr/10-LAT-OBOWIAZYWANIA-REACH-I-CLP-OCENA-ZNAJOMOSCI-I-WDRAZANIA-PRZEPISOW-PRZEZ-POLSKICH,103638,0,2.html |
| Summary: | Background
The aim of this work was to assess the awareness among both downstream users and distributors of chemicals in
Poland, as regards legal regulations applicable to chemicals (i.e., the Regulation on Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and
Restriction of Chemicals − REACH, and the Registration on classification, labelling and packaging − CLP), and to identify on this
basis the needs for training and information campaigns addressed to these professional groups, by means of a questionnaire survey.
Material and Methods
The SurveyMonkey Internet survey software was selected for this purpose. Two groups of respondents were
surveyed − downstream users (DU) and distributors (D) of chemicals, and consumers.
Results
Responses were obtained from 65
downstream users and distributors of chemicals, and from 98 consumers. As many as 23% of the respondents did not know the
obligations imposed on their company by REACH and CLP. Over 59% of the DU/D respondents did not have the opportunity to
participate in chemical safety management (CSM) training in the last 5 years. Eighty percent of the respondents were interested in
participating in free courses that would enable them to broaden their knowledge of the classification, labeling and marketing of
chemicals.
Conclusions
Despite the 10 years of the application of REACH and CLP, many people working for chemical enterprises
still do not know their company’s obligations set out in these regulations. The percentage of people positively assessing their competences
increases with the size of the enterprise. The results of the survey indicate the need to organize continuous training for people
using chemicals in their professional activity and for distributors. It is very important to ensure training at the basic level of chemical
distributors. Such training should provide them with elementary knowledge on the hazards posed by chemicals, which could then be
passed to consumers in an understandable manner. Med Pr. 2019;70(4):435–44 |
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| ISSN: | 0465-5893 2353-1339 |