Fuente: © European Parliament
http://www.europarl.eu.int/

EU: REACH: MEPs do not oppose chemical substance testing methods

/noticias.info/ The European Parliament has refrained from opposing the adoption of a draft Commission Regulation on Reach-compliant substance testing methods for chemical substances, since it got assurances from the Commission, that in the future new non-animal test methods will be approved in a quicker and more transparent way. MEPs had threatened to exercise their right to stop the new legislation, if the Commission would not commit itself to change its procedures to encourage non-animal test methods.

Test methods for chemical substances are regulated in different legislation at the moment and shall be shifted into a new Commission Regulation under REACH. At the same time new test methods, including alternative test methods to replace animal testing, will be integrated in the new Regulation. Before new test methods can be included they must be scientifically validated but have to be also approved in a regulatory procedure which is taking momentarily a long time.

In the resolution adopted with 508 votes in favour, 6 against and 8 abstentions, MEPs criticise that the Commission has not included a number of scientifically validated alternative test methods to animal tests in the regulation just because the regulatory procedure has not been terminated yet. They want to guarantee that new non-animal test methods can be applied as soon as possible. During the elaboration of the REACH regulation the promotion of alternatives to the animal testing of chemicals was an issue of prime concern to MEPs and is now included among the goals of REACH.

MEPs nevertheless refrained from opposing the draft Commission Regulation (a right the EP has since the proposal is to be dealt with under the first-ever regulatory procedure with scrutiny to be carried out in the Environment Committee) since they got formal assurances from the Commission that in the future the approval of non-animal test methods will be more transparent and quicker. notas_de_prensa_archivo