Substances hazardous to the environment and health in plastics and upholstery materials
Level: Advanced
Plastics and upholstery materials used for furniture may contain hazardous substances and this requirement helps to reduce their use.
Details
- Type:
- Technical specification
- ID:
- 11480
- Group:
- Furniture
Criterion text
Plastics and upholstery materials in furniture shall not have any of the following added1:
- halogenated organic compounds
- chlorinated polymers
- bisphenol A
- alkylphenols and alkylphenoltoxylates or other alkylphenol derivatives2
- pigments and additives based on lead, tin, cadmium, chromium VI and mercury and their compounds
- substances classified with the following hazard statements in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 (CLP Regulation), neither in the EU harmonised classification (Annex VI CLP Regulation) nor in the case of self-classification:
Classification in accordance with the CLP Regulation | |
Hazard class | Hazard statement |
Carcinogenic | H350 |
Mutagen | H340 |
Reproductive toxicity | H360 |
Dyes in the furniture’s upholstery materials should only be used:
- to distinguish between different grades (e.g. hard and soft foam) within the same type of upholstery material
- if the upholstery material is visible and is used without anything over the upholstery material.
Colours consisting of metal complexes and colours classified with the below risk phrases and hazard statements as per the CLP Regulation shall not be included3 in offered products:
Classification in accordance with the CLP Regulation | |
Acute toxicity (categories 1-3) | H300, H301, H310, H311, H330, H331 |
Specific organ toxicity – single exposure (category 1) | H370 |
Specific organ toxicity – repeated exposure (category 1) | H372 |
Hazardous to the aquatic environment | H400, H410, H411 |
Small plastic parts (<100 g), are not subject to the above requirement.
1All substances in the product, including additives (such as pigments) are included in the ingredients, but not impurities from raw material production. Impurities include residues from the production of the raw materials contained in the finished product in concentrations below 100 ppm (0.01 % by weight, 100 mg/kg), but not substances that have been intentionally and for a specific purpose added to a raw material, regardless of quantity.
2Alkylphenol derivatives are defined as substances excreted from alkylphenols during degradation.
3All substances in a product, including impurities in the substances or raw materials, are counted as constituent substances. Impurities include reaction products/by-products and degradation products at concentrations above 0.01% (equivalent to 100 ppm). The constituent substances also include, regardless of content level, additives that have been intentionally added to achieve a particular function, such as the preservation or stabilisation of the substances or raw materials.
Verification
When requested, the supplier must be able to present for example one of the following:
- Labellings that meet the requirement, such as a valid license for
- Nordic Swan Ecolabel, Furniture and furnishings 031
- Analytical reports carried out by accredited laboratories
- The company's self-declaration/supplier's declaration including technical documentation of compliance verified by an accredited verification body, accredited for the task according to ISO/IEC 17029 or equivalent standard
Proposed follow-up
Labelling
If the requirement has been verified with a labelling, verification can be carried out by checking that there is a valid license for the product in question. This is checked on their website:
Nordic Swan Ecolabel.
Analytical report
If the requirement has been verified with analytical reports, conduct random checks of the analytical reports and verify that the values are below the requirement’s limit value. Also check that the analyses were carried out by an accredited laboratory.
Self-declaration verified by an accredited verification body
Request the company's self-declaration including technical documentation of compliance verified by an accredited verification body, accredited for the task according to ISO/IEC 17029.
Information about the criterion
There are currently no accredited verification bodies according to ISO/IEC 17029 (Conformity Assessment – General Principles and Requirements for Validation and Verification Bodies), as it is a relatively new standard. However, this may change, especially if the demand to verify compliance in this way increases. This possibility is therefore included in the list of possible evidence. More information about the standard can be found on Swedac's website.
Environmental goals
Versions history
The version date indicates when the sustainability criterion was created or last updated. Last reviewed dated tells when we last checked that the sustainability criterion still is relevant.
- Current ID
- 11480
- Version date
- 2021-12-13
- Review date
- 2024-05-27