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Written question asked by Countess of Mar (Crossbench) on Tuesday, 21 May 2019, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 5 June 2019. It was answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble (Conservative) on Tuesday, 4 June 2019 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.


Fire Resistant Materials

Question

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Henley on 20 May (HL15634), whether DecaBDE is the same chemical as DecaPBDE; and whether production and use of DecaPBDE continues in the UK.

Answer

Polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) is a group of chemicals consisting of brominated hydrocarbons, of which decabromodiphenyl ether (DecaBDE) is one. When the term DecaPBDE is used in literature it usually refers to DecaBDE.

The UK ceased production of DecaBDE in 1996 and its use has declined sharply since then. It has been banned under the UN Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants since December 2018 and this will be reflected in the revision to Regulation (EC) No 850/2004 on Persistent Organic Pollutants and also under the European chemical regulation regime, REACH, since March 2019.


Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
HL15892
Session
2017-19
Related items
Furniture: Fire Resistant Materials
Monday, 20 May 2019
Written questions
House of Lords
Chemicals: Regulation
Monday, 24 June 2019
Written questions
House of Lords
Subjects
Chemicals Fire resistant materials
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk