EU PFOS Directive Is About To Be Implemented

The European Union's directive to restrict the use of PFOS will be formally implemented in June 27, 2008. PFOS is widely used in many civilian and industrial production areas. The implementation of this directive will have a serious impact on the export of related products to a large extent.

PFOS is known as perfluorooctane sulfonyl compounds (C8F17SO2X). It is the main active ingredient of antifouling agents for textiles and leather products. It is widely used in the field of civil and industrial products. It is one of the most difficult organic pollutants to be degraded at present. It has high bioaccumulation and toxicity. It will not only cause respiratory problems, but also lead to the death of new born babies. The global pollution caused by it is attracting more and more attention.

In October 25, 2006, the European Parliament passed the directive 2006/122/EC, which restricts the use of PFOS. The directive stipulates that the restrictions imposed by the European Union members on June 27, 2008 will be formally implemented in June 27, 2008. The specific limits are as follows: 1. the content of the compound itself or its products should be less than 0.005% (50ppm); the content of 2. semi-finished products should be less than 0.1% (1000ppm); and the content of 3. textiles or coatings should be less than 1 g/m2.

This marks a formal ban on the use of PFOS in commodities by the European Union. The export enterprises, such as textiles and leather products, will be the first to be affected.

Because PFOS has the widest range in the textile industry, any fabric that needs printing and dyeing and finishing must be washed before processing. In addition, the additives used for functional finishing such as UV and antibacterial can also contain PFOS. The implementation of this directive will directly affect the export of our products such as textiles, leather, paper, packaging, dyeing auxiliaries, cosmetics and so on.

The survey shows that most export enterprises in China have not paid enough attention to the PFOS directive, and even do not know whether their products contain PFOS components.

The EU PFOS directive covers a very wide range and will have a greater impact on China's foreign trade.

It is understood that at present there are more ideal substitutes in the world. However, no textile auxiliaries that can fully comply with EU's PFOS control standards have been developed in China.

Domestic related export enterprises should communicate with relevant European importers as soon as possible and intensify the selection, testing and application of alternative products, so as to reduce the losses caused by the implementation of the directive.