Articles

Brussels, 21st April 2015 - The following statement can be attributed to CES – Silicones Europe further to the United Kingdom’s proposal to restrict the use of octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (D4) and decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5) in wash off personal care products.

The safety of D4 and D5 in personal care products has been established by independent expert panels, including the European Scientific Committee for Consumer Safety, the United States Cosmetics Review Panel, and Health Canada.

“Environmental monitoring data voluntarily collected by the global silicones industry and governmental regulatory agencies demonstrate that D4 and D5 are not and will not be found at levels that pose a risk to the environment”, commented Dr. Pierre Germain, Secretary General of CES – Silicones Europe.

ECHA’s Member States Committee is expected to make a final decision on whether D4 and D5 meet the PBT¹ criteria under the European Union’s chemicals management program (REACH) in the coming days.
Silicones Europe acknowledges the extensive work done by the United Kingdom as well as by the Netherlands as rapporteur for the Member States Committee, in assessing D4 and D5. Silicones Europe understands that current REACH criteria were not meant for silicon-based substances and therefore over-predict their potential bioaccumulation and concentration in the environment.

Furthermore, Environment Canada, having reviewed the environmental data available for D4, has not imposed any product concentration restrictions on the use of D4 in any application. In addition, a comprehensive, risk-based assessment of the data conducted by an independent, group of leading scientific experts selected by the Canadian Government concluded that D5 does not pose a risk to the environment.

We do not believe that D4 and D5 are PBT or vPvB²  as demonstrated by the latest scientific information of these substances and their behavior in the environment. The silicones industry will seek to continue to work collaboratively with the authorities in an effort to help ensure that regulatory decisions incorporate assessment of actual risk and do not unnecessarily impact innovation, job-creation, and economic growth.

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About CES – Silicones Europe: We are a non-profit trade organisation representing all major producers of silicones, silanes and siloxanes in Europe. CES is a sector group of the European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC), which is both the forum and voice of the European chemicals industry. We provide health, safety and environmental information and are dedicated to the principles of Responsible Care.

For more information, please visit our Cyclosiloxanes Information Centre at www.cyclosiloxanes.org or contact:

Dr. Pierre Germain
CES – Silicones Europe
Secretary General
Email : pge@cefic.be
Phone : +32 2 676 7377
Twitter : @SiliconesEU
www.silicones.eu

¹ Persistent, Bioaccumulative, Toxic (PBT) 
²(very) Persistent, (very) Bioaccumulative and/or Toxic