California 65 test standard

      California Proposition 65 (mandatory safe drinking water and toxic substances act) was enacted in November 1986.

The purpose of the proposal is to:

      Protect California citizens and California's drinking water resources from chemicals known to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive toxicity; Inform California citizens about the hazards of exposure to chemicals in their purchased items, their homes or workplaces, or the release of chemicals into the environment. The proposal requires the government to publish at least once a year chemicals known to California to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity. More than 800 chemicals have been released.

The products involved in the proposal are:

      Jewelry, toys, electrical devices, glass ceramic materials, clothing, accessories, drugs, pesticides, dyes, cosmetics, gifts, manufacturing or construction supplies, by-products of chemical processes, such as automobile exhaust, smoke, natural gas combustion, etc., almost all products are covered, and the exposure scenarios of dangerous goods are listed.

The core requirements of the proposal are as follows:

1) The hazardous substances listed in the proposal are not allowed to be discharged into the drinking water.

2) Provide clear and reasonable warnings (for listed substances, warnings must be given, unless the exposure level is too low to pose a risk).

      Warning labels can be attached to products, placed in the workplace, retail stores, or distribution notices, printed in newspapers and periodicals. Generally, it is recommended to stick warning labels on products. The main content of the label is to describe the product contains lead.

1. Requirements of California regulation 65 on toy products: in August 2008, the state of California reached an agreement on the exposure of lead and phthalates to users of toys or other children's products. The ruling ruled that certain products sold by manufacturers in California must not contain lead and phthalates.

"Phthalate free" means that the content of DEHP (DI (2-ethyl) hexyl phthalate), BBP (butyl benzyl phthalate), DBP (di-n-butyl phthalate), DIDP (di-n-hexyl phthalate) and dnhp (di-n-hexyl phthalate) in certain products are not more than 0.1% (1000ppm). "Lead free" means, in a particular product:

(i) The lead content of PVC parts is less than 0.02% (200ppm); also

(II) exposed non PVC parts contain less than 0.06% (600ppm) lead.

"Specific products" include:

(i) "Toys" designed for children under 6 years old, or used by children under 6 years old under reasonable circumstances; as well as

(II) a "child care product" designed for children under 3 years of age, or is reasonably used to promote sleep, relaxation, grooming, hygiene, feeding or assisting children under 3 years of age to suck or grind their teeth.

Note: compliance with CPSIA does not mean compliance with California proposal 65. The requirements of proposal 65 for phthalates include dnhp, which is not mentioned in the CPSIA. In addition, according to proposal 65, the lead content of PVC parts shall not exceed 0.02% (200ppm), while the consumer product safety improvement act, which will come into effect on February 10, 2009, requires a lead content limit of 0.06% (600ppm) for substrates.

California 65 issues collection:

Q: What are the requirements of California Proposition 65?

A: California Proposition 65 requires the governor of California to publish a list of known carcinogens and / or reproductive poisons determined by the California government. The list will be updated annually to list the chemicals that must be regulated by law. As of February 2010, the list contained more than 850 chemicals.

California Proposition 65 does not prohibit the sale of products containing hazardous substances of any degree. However, the proposal requires that the products should be labeled properly if the products contain listed chemicals and their contents reach known hazardous levels.

California Proposition 65 applies to the following areas to regulate harmful chemicals:

· drinking water discharge

· exposure to the environment

· exposure to the work environment

· consumer goods

California Proposition 65 requires enterprises employing 10 or more employees to give "clear and reasonable warning" in advance if any employee will be exposed to the chemicals listed in accordance with the act in California and the amount of the chemicals is at a detectable level. The proposal also requires warning slogans to be attached to products that may pose potential risks to consumers. The purpose of the warning is to let consumers make informed decisions to purchase products and services; And let other people who come into contact with those harmful chemicals take actions they think are appropriate to protect themselves from being exposed to harmful substances.

Q: What is the "60 day violation notice" in California Proposition 65?

A: If a customer receives a notice of violation, he / she should contact his / her legal team. Clients can seek help from a lawyer who specializes in California Proposition 65. If you need the help of a legal team, there are a number of law firms on the market that deal with California Proposition 65. After receiving the 60 day notice, the customer should wait for the settlement agreement to be formally reached before updating the plan requirements or determining the solution. As there are still opportunities to change the relevant restrictions and requirements before the final settlement agreement is reached, the customer should not act before taking action in accordance with the test criteria.

Q: What chemical categories are included in the list?

A: The California Proposition 65 list contains two categories of chemicals: carcinogens (substances that cause cancer) and reproductive toxins (substances that cause birth defects or other reproductive harm). The list contains a wide range of chemicals, many of which are materials or ingredients of daily household goods, such as ceramic containers, alcoholic drinks and aspirin. It also includes industrial chemicals, dyes or solvents used in dry cleaning, manufacturing or construction, such as benzene, cadmium, perchloroethylene and formaldehyde. Some are by-products of combustion, such as automobile exhaust, aircraft exhaust, cigarette smoke and burning natural gas. As for lead, which is carcinogenic and reproductive toxic, has always been one of the chemicals involved in litigation.

Q: How can chemicals be included in the list?

A: Chemicals classified as carcinogenic or reproductive toxic by the following U.S. agencies are included in the list: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); and; Food and Drug Administration (FDA); National Institute of occupational safety and health (NIOSH); The National Toxicology Program (NTP) and the international agency for research on cancer (IARC). At the same time, a chemical may also fall into the list if it is required by state or federal government agencies to label a warning or to classify it as carcinogenic or reproductive toxic. In addition, the governor may appoint two independent panels of scientists and health experts to determine whether a chemical should be included in the list based on scientific evidence that adequately demonstrates carcinogenicity and reproductive toxicity

Q: Should the customer test all the chemicals in the list?

A: Although safe harbor limits are associated with each of the chemicals listed in the California Proposition 65 list, they do not regulate the content of chemicals in a given product category. Therefore, we do not recommend testing all the 850 chemicals on the list. The purpose of Bureau Veritas is to assist customers in conducting tests that are of concern, have established restrictions and / or labeling requirements, and are specific to specific product types to facilitate compliance.

Q: Under the control of the proposal, when is a warning required?

A: When a company knows or should have known that any person has an opportunity to be exposed to a chemical defined by statute as hazardous, it is required to label the product with a warning in accordance with California Proposition 65. Although California Proposition 65 covers a wide range of topics, not all hazardous substances trigger the notification and warning obligations required by the proposal. The warning requirements of California Proposition 65 do not apply to the following situations:

1. Any warning requirements relating to exposure to chemicals are, to some extent, governed by federal law and have powers beyond the state government

2. Any exposure to the chemical occurred within 12 months after the chemical was first added to the governor's list; or

3. Exposure to any known carcinogenic substance, but "it is still doubtful whether lifetime exposure to the substance will not cause significant risk" or "exposure to reproductive toxicants known in this state but assuming exposure to one thousandth of the relevant substance does not cause significant risk, it is still doubtful."

4. Exposure to natural chemicals in food

However, in the California Proposition 65 case, the burden of proving any of the above exemptions falls on the defense, which can be a difficult and expensive process.