Environmental Technology Verification (ETV) is the establishment or validation of environmental technology performance by qualified third parties based on test data generated through testing using established protocols or specific requirements. The European Commission launched a voluntary scheme for ETV on an experimental basis: the EU ETV pilot programme. The programme is intended for innovative technologies...

The Joint Research Council (JRC) has recently published a report which provides guidelines on implementing water reuse in Europe, and analyses the associated technical, environmental, health and socioeconomic challenges to such reuse. Water recycling and reuse is one of the answers to the water challenges in the urban, industrial and agricultural contexts; it can help...

To support innovation, especially by SMEs, ECHA has published an update to its Guidance on Scientific Research and Development (SR&D) and Product and Process Orientated Research and Development (PPORD) simultaneously with a new Guidance in a nutshell on the same subject. The REACH Regulation aims to ensure “a high level of protection of human health...

REACH 2018 seems far away but companies need to start preparing now. The last registration deadline for existing chemicals, 31 May 2018, concerns substances manufactured or imported in low volumes, between 1-100 tonnes per year. This means that a larger proportion of small and medium-sized enterprises will be registering for the first time and large...

ECHA’s website now provides detailed information on the import and export of certain very hazardous chemicals and pesticides which are subject to the Prior Informed Concern (PIC) Regulation. The new web pages contain over 10 years of regulatory information, reports and statistics that were previously made available in the European Database of Export and Import...

InterTradeIreland has urged SMEs to prepare for changes to the way in which public sector services are tendered in Ireland in terms of new category structures and centralised Government purchasing through the Office of Government Procurement (OGP). The OGP was established in January 2014 with a key objective to optimise value for money through smarter...

Two key steps in Ireland’s on-going implementation of the Water Framework Directive (WFD) have been announced. A consultation document on the Timetable and Work Programme for the development of the 2nd cycle of River Basin Management Plans. New Regulations have also been introduced which re-assign functional responsibility for WFD implementation to local authorities, to the Environmental Protection...

EU rules on the information provided with chemical products used in the construction sector do not need to be extended to include more information on hazardous ingredients, the European Commission has decided.  The Commission report has concluded that the declarations of performance (DOPs) introduced by the 2011 Construction Products Regulation (CPR) already contain sufficient provisions on...

There are many reasons why Sustainability is good for business, including opportunities for SMEs to benefit. Potential to increase profits,  eg. reducing energy usage, waste, raw material and transport which all correlate directly to reducing costs. Fulfil the demand for greener products and services. There is a growing demand among consumers for greener and safer products and people are...

The eGuide on safety data sheets an interactive online publication that aims to provide information on safety data sheets and exposure scenarios in a user friendly way. Its simple structure makes it suitable as both a training tool and reference tool to help employees use chemicals safely.  Some users may require a brief overview of the...