In our country, KKDIK legislation published in the Official Gazette on June 23, 2017 of Chemicals Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of means [1].
KKDIK, which entered into force on 1 June 2007. REACH regulation in the European Union is integrated in the state of Turkey.
The main objectives in the creation of the REACH regulation are;
• Protection of human health and the environment from the risks of chemicals,
• To increase the competitiveness of the chemical industry,
• To assess the hazards of substances and to encourage alternative methods to reduce the number of animal tests [2].
The REACH regulation applies to all chemicals. It is applied not only in industrial processes but also in our daily life, for example in cleaning products, paints and also in articles such as clothes, furniture and household appliances.
A significant part of the REACH regulation relates to the registration of manufacturers and importers/exporters. Registered industrialists (manufacturers/exporters/ importers) need to collect and compare information on the properties of the substances they put on the market for 1 tonne or more per year.
This information provides for the assessment and control of the risks and damages generated by a substance and should also be registered with the European Chemicals Agency in Helsinki. The main summary of these processes is that they will not be in the market if there is no data.
If the risks cannot be managed, the authorities may restrict the use of the substances in different ways. In the long run, the most dangerous substance is replaced by less hazardous substances [3].
In the light of all these general information, a new page has been opened for Turkish Industry with the entry into force of KKDIK in our country. The Regulation on KKDIK is managed by the Ministry of Environment and Urbanization.
Process integration is accelerated through trainings involving manufacturers, importers and exporters. The evaluation of chemicals will be carried out by chemical evaluation experts. A specialized training process and certification process are designed for this specialization.
The manufacturers, exporters and importers must identify and control the risks arising from the substances produced and imported by them, and should examine, compare and evaluate the following main items and the sub-items of each [4].
• Identity and Physical-Chemical Properties of Substances.
• Manufacturing and Uses.
• Classification and Labeling.
• Environmental Behavior Features.
• Human Health Hazard Assessment.
• Physicochemical Hazard Assessment.
• Assessment of Environmental Hazard.
• Evaluation of PBT and PvB.
• Evaluation of Exposure.
• Risk Characterization.
Evaluation of Chlorinated Solvents Under REACH
Chlorinated solvents (methylene chloride, perchlorethylene, trichlorethylene, chloroform) are used in many sectors as raw material, cleaning and process reagent. They are widely preferred due to their relative costs and processing performances.
The absence of burnable - flammable properties is one of the greatest advantages, but chlorine content is of great importance for both human and environment.
In Europe, the use of trichlorethylene in the carcinogenic class (1B group) with the REACH regulation has been prohibited as of April 2016. It is allowed to be used only in applications such as asphalt test where the alternative cannot be found.
As a result of this restriction, the use of chemicals that are less harmful to human health and the environment has become essential to the processes in which trichlorethylene is used in the market.
In our country, restrictions on chlorinated solvent group have been introduced with the scope of KKDIK. Table 1 shows the current and future restrictions on chlorinated solvents.
Table 1. Restrictions on substances containing chlorine in the scope of KKDIK
• http://kimyasallar.csb.gov.tr/mevzuat
Along with the regulation of KKDIK, high user exposure associated with dichloromethane, which has a very intensive use in dye cleaning sector, limitation and prohibition has been imposed on its use in this sector. Table 2 shows the corresponding restriction [5].
Table 2. Restriction of KKDIK for Dichloromethane
• http://kimyasallar.csb.gov.tr/mevzuat
As a result, the main purpose of the KKDIK Regulation on the production of dangerous products to replace dangerous products is to provide benefit to producers, consumers, processes and the natural environment.
Human and natural disasters are caused by harmful chemicals. It is also an incentive act that makes the sector to produce new alternatives.
Özge Özcan
Metallurgical&Materials Engineer
Sales&Marketing Specialist
EF Kimya Tic. ve San. Ltd. Şti.
References
[1] Çevre ve Şehircilik Bakanlığı KKDİK Hakkında Yönetmelik, Eylem Özlem Nalbantoğlu, http://reach.immib.org.tr/doc/KKDiK-CSB-Ocak2018.pdf
[2] ECHA, echa.europa.eu/regulations/reach/understanding-reach
[3] ECHA, https://echa.europa.eu/echa-irs
[4] A Critical Evaluation of the 2011 ECHA Reports on Compliance with the REACH and CLP Regulations and on the Use of Alternatives to Testing on Animals for Compliance with the REACH Regulation, Horst Spielmann,1 Ursula G. Sauer2 and Ovanes Mekenyan3
[5] Çevre ve Şehircilik Bakanlığı, Maddelerin Değerlendirilmesi ve Kimyasal Güvenlik Raporların Hazırlanması için Genel Hükümler, sayfa 165
