Florian Kohl, Albemarle, underlined that flame retardants should not be analysed as groups, but as individual substances, because the term “flame retardant” merely describes the function of a substance and not its chemical nature, and it is the structure which determines the properties of the substance.
He gave a brief introduction to the REACH regulation and the objectives of its different parts. He also presented the E&E “End-of-life Decision Tree” being developed by EFRA. This information tool for the waste and recycling industries indicates whether given material – flame retardant combinations can be recycled or not as a function of applicable regulations. In particular, the presence of now-banned substances in some plastic waste streams may prevent recycling of such plastic material. Overall, a holistic approach should be followed on flame retardants, balancing technical, regulatory and recycling requirements.