Clear communication of the new EU chemicals policy

The EU’s REACH regulation on chemicals entered into force on June 1, 2007, thus fundamentally harmonising and simplifying the existing chemicals legislation. This reorganisation had far-reaching consequences for a great number of companies. In order to facilitate the implementation process and support companies to make the required transition, the Federal Environment Office (UBA) set up the "REACH anpacken!" ("Tackling REACH!") conference series. The aim of this series, which was organised and delivered by adelphi, was to provide the agents concerned with the requisite knowledge of REACH and so to help small and medium-sized businesses, authorities and other agencies to successfully implement REACH in practice.

During a total of four major conferences, certain basic questions about REACH were addressed, such as: How are chemicals registered, evaluated and authorised? What chemical data do companies have to provide? What must be taken into account when identifying the risks posed by a chemical? The highlight of the conference series was the closing event, where six parallel forums took place in four cycles held one after the other, giving over 400 participants a final, in-depth look at REACH shortly before the regulation came into force.