REACH Home Page

REACH has been driven by the European Directorate-Generals for the Environment and for Enterprise at European Commission level, and the most intensive lobbying has come from groups interested in the environmental rather than health issues.  Nevertheless, this is changing as industry and regulators start grappling with the detail of how it will work in practice.

Many aspects of REACH touch on fundamental occupational hygiene practice and occupational health professionals must be engaged to deliver effective implementation.

We have therefore set up these REACH pages as an information source about REACH and its implementation, to raise awareness of the significance for occupational hygiene, and to focus on the key issues for our members.  We also want to highlight BOHS's engagement in this area, particularly through our REACH Steering Group and its action plan, and provide an opportunity for members to comment, provide advice, and to raise issues and questions.  We will keep these pages updated with information as it emerges, such as on EU guidance, UK guidance, and provide interpretation of any such technical guidance in terms relevant and easily accessible to members, and usable in their provision of advice and information to others.

Currently within this REACH section are three main pages:
What is REACH?
The role for Occupational Hygienists
The role of BOHS

Key information within these pages includes:
BOHS's Official Response to the recent Defra consultation on the Enforcement of REACH in the UK
'REACH Beyond 2007': presentations from our October 2007 event held at the Maritime Museum in Liverpool
'How to Reach 2007' open technical seminar: presentations from our March 2007 event held at the Food Research Institute in Norwich
'What does REACH really mean for Occupational Hygiene' : background information and discussion themes for this workshop which was held at this year's Annual Conference in Glasgow in April 2007
The final report from the December 2005 workshop held in Brussels entitled 'REACH: Implications and Opportunities for the Practice and Profession of Occupational Hygiene'
BOHS's Guiding Statement on 'the value of Occupational Hygiene in REACH implementation'
BOHS's REACH  Strategy and Action Plan
Published REACH articles which have been produced by members of the Steering Group

If you are a BOHS member and would like to comment on any aspect of REACH, these web pages and/or anything that BOHS is doing in this area, please visit the REACH forum. 

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has been appointed the Competent Authority in the UK, and addtiional information can be found on the REACH pages of HSE's website .  And, if you're bamboozled by the seemingly inordinately high number of acronyms, follow this link for a glossary of terms.