The Creosote (Prohibition on Use and Marketing)(No. 2) Regulations 2003

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations implement Commission Directive 2001/90/EC (OJ No. L283, 27.10.01, p. 41). They revoke the Creosote (Prohibition on Use and Marketing) Regulations 2003 (S.I. 2003/721) (“the 2003 Regulations”) using the power contained in section 11 (5) of the Consumer Protection Act 1987. This revocation comes into force before the 2003 Regulations were to have come into effect. The remaining provisions, which re-enact the 2003 Regulations with amendments, are made under section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972. These Regulations correct defects in the 2003 Regulations.

Regulation 2 revokes the Environmental Protection (Controls on Injurious Substances) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/3244) other than regulation 6, which had previously provided for restrictions on the use and marketing of wood treated with the dangerous substances or preparations referred to below.

The Regulations prohibit the use of creosote and creosote-related substances set out in the Schedule (“the dangerous substances or preparations”) in the treatment of wood except for treatment in industrial installations and industrial or professional use for in situ retreatment (regulation 4). Dangerous substances or preparations may not be sold to consumers (regulation 5(1)) and may not be placed on the market unless the requirements as to composition (regulation 4(3)), packaging and labelling (regulation 5(3)) are complied with.

Treated wood may not be placed on the market except for industrial and professional use. Wood treated before the Regulations come into force may be supplied for second-hand use (regulation 5(5)), and its use is restricted by regulation 6.

Treated wood may not be used in the situations specified in regulation 6, including inside any buildings, in toys and in playgrounds. Where treated wood is in use before the Regulations came into force its continued use is not affected by the restrictions on use in regulation 6.

A person who contravenes regulation 4, 5 or 6 is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction with a maximum of three months' imprisonment or a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale (regulation 7).

The EINECS and CAS numbers identifying the dangerous substances or preparations in the Schedule are given respectively in the European Inventory of Existing Commercial Chemical Substances (OJ No. Cl46A, 15.6.90, p. 1) and the CAS Registry Handbook, ISSN 0093–058X. The latter may be inspected at the Royal Society of Chemistry, Burlington House, Piccadilly, London W1V 0BN.

A full regulatory impact assessment report of the effect that these Regulations would have on the costs to business and a transposition note are freely available to the public from the Consumer and Competition Policy Directorate, Department of Trade and Industry, 4th Floor, 1 Victoria Street, London SWIH 0ET. Copies of the report have also been placed in the libraries of both Houses of Parliament.