Environmental Compliance - Chemical and Waste Management
As a global provider of products, services and solutions to industrial and commercial users of electronic components and enterprise computing solutions, we seek to apply the power of technology and innovation to address the world’s economic, social and environmental issues.
Arrow is committed to reducing its environmental footprint. Our approach to environmental management focuses on the operation of our business. This means the use of environmentally friendly technologies, avoidance of emissions, reducing waste and the use of energy-saving solutions.
Chemical and Material Compliance:
The EU’s Green Deal, launched in December 2019, set out to achieve a toxic-free environment, with the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability (CSS), presented on 14th October 2020, providing a detailed strategy for implementing this vision. The CSS promises to remove hazardous chemicals from everyday products and put forward multiple actions to achieve a non-toxic environment.
RoHS:
In its first release, RoHS Directive impacted the use of six substances in a range of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE). These substances were: Lead (Pb), Mercury (Hg), Cadmium (Cd), Hexavalent chromium (chromium VI, Cr+6), Polybrominated biphenyls (PBB) and Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE).
RoHS Directive has been already revised twice. In 2011, a recast commonly referred to as RoHs 2 or RoHS Recast added support for enforcement bodies, as well as an extended list of exemptions. Then, a 2015 update added four more restricted chemicals to the RoHS Directive. Those chemicals are: Bis(2-Ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), Benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP), Dibutyl phthalate (DBP) and Diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP).
RoHS 2 expanded the directive in a number of ways. Lists and exemptions were added, as was the need for technical files. It also included a requirement for the CE to demonstrate compliance, expanded the list of categories to bring all electronics into scope under Category 11, and introduced other new business requirements.
Given the speed at which technology evolves an official update of the directive is expected in the coming years. This will add additional requirements, and remove others based on evaluations of RoHS 2.
REACH:
The EU Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) Regulation has grown exponentially in scope since it entered into force in 2007 and shows no indication of slowing since ECHA is regularly introducing more comprehensive categorization of substances in scope of the REACH Regulation.
To ensure compliance, a company must report, as applicable, against the REACH Candidate List of SVHCs, the Annex XIV Authorizations List and the Annex XVII Restricted Substances List with evolving regulations:
In 2020, the biggest shift in the REACH Regulation focused on data quality. The EU Waste Framework Directive (WFD) — a piece of legislation that addresses the impact of inappropriate waste management with the support of REACH’s Candidate, Authorization and Restricted Substances lists — was revised in July 2018.
With this revision, Article 9.2 entered into force, tasking the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) with the development of a database to streamline product tracking across its entire life cycle. This database is known as the Substances of Concern In articles, as such or in complex objects (SCIP products) database.
Beginning on January 5, 2021, suppliers are required to submit substance information, including details on Substances of Very High Concern (SVHCs), and, if applicable, safe use instructions for every article entering the EU market.
Position Statements:
Cobalt and Mica (Extended Minerals Reporting)
PFAS (EU proposed restriction)
Electronic Waste
For a circular economy it is essential to recycle materials from waste in order 'to close the loop'. The recovery of energy from waste also plays an important role. Waste disposal should be phased out and, where it is unavoidable, it must be adequately controlled to be safe for human health and the environment.
In March 2020, the European Commission presented a new circular economy action plan that has as one of its priorities the reduction of electronic and electrical waste. The proposal specifically outlines immediate goals like creating the “right to repair” and improving reusability in general and establishing a rewards system to encourage recycling electronics.
Discarded electronic and electrical equipment contains potentially harmful materials that pollute the environment and increase the risks for people involved in recycling e-waste. To counter this problem, the EU has passed legislation to prevent the use of certain chemicals by reviewing EU rules on restrictions of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment and providing guidance to improve coherence with relevant legislation, including REACH and Ecodesign.
Arrow meets its obligation to WEEE and Batteries Directives through membership of approved Compliance Schemes in relevant EU Countries.
eWaste Management: