Mid-October the EU Commission published the Implementing Regulation to renew the approval of Creosote in the EU Journal.
With this implementing regulation, it is decided that after 30 April 2023 only railway sleepers or utility poles treated with Creosote may be placed on the market. The European Commission will publish a list of countries where these applications are allowed early 2023.
This decision also means that Creosote is banned for all other applications in all EU-member States after 30 April 2023. Some countries will still apply a transition period of 6 months during which the sale of stocks of Creosote-treated wood is allowed. However, most countries will apply a strict reading of the regulation and claim that the transition period has started upon day of publication of the regulation and the transition period will ends on 30 April. Meaning stocks must be traded out by that date.
French restriction
France prepared an Annex XV dossier restricting the placing on the market of wood treated with Creosote. proposal concerns reuse and secondary use of creosoted railway sleepers and telecommunication poles.
A public consultation will be launched at the end of December. The consultation will be open for 6 months and the comments will feed into the Risk Assessment Committee of the European Chemicals Agency. The 2nd hand use element concerns WEI as a decision to ban 2nd hand use could impact the EU market. We will participate in the public consultation.
