ARCHIVESHISTORIQUES
DELACOMMISSION
COLLECTION RELIEEDES
DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM(81)274
Vol.1981/0091

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COMMISSION OFTHEEUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
COM(81)274
Brussels,2final
June1981
Proposalfora
COUNCILDIRECTIVE
amendingDirective 77/728/EEContheapproximation of
thelaws,regulations andadministrative provisions of
theMemberStatesrelatingtotheclassification ,pack­
agingandlabellingofpaints,varnishes,printinginks,
adhesives andsimilarproducts
(submittedtotheCouncilbytheCommission )
'\\
/;•.-r
r-' ■^
C0M(81)274final

Exclanatory memorandum
I.General.
Directive77/728/EEContheapproximation ofthe-Laws,regulations
andadministrative provisionsoftheMeniber .Statesrelatingtothe
classification ,packagingandlabellingofpaints,varnishes,printing
(1)
.inks,adhesivesandsimilarproducts wasapprovedbytheCouncilon
7November1977.Ithastwoaims,tosecurefreetradewithinthe
EuropeanCommunityandtoprotectpersonsusingtheseproducts'by.
anadequatelabelling. '
TheabovementionedDirectiveisbased-onandreferstotheCouncil •
Directives 67/548/EECrelatingtotheclassification ,packagingand
labellingofdangeroussubstances and73/173/EECrelatingtosolvents.
Directive67/548/EECondangeroussubstances waslastamendedon
(2)18September1979,andDirective73/173/EECrelatingtosolvents
on22July1980C3).
Theseamendments mustnowbetakenintoaccount.Theymakeit
necessarytoadaptthescopeofDirective77/728/EECandinparticular
tobringitinlinewithDirective73/173/EEC.
» ^ .
Advantageshouldalsobetakenofthisopportunity toclearupdiffi­
cultiesofinterpretation „intheexistingtext,somepassagesofwhich
needtobesupplemented anddraftedmoreprecisely.<
^ '
II.Commentsonthearticles
Article 1
ThisarticleamendsvariouspartsofArticle3intheexisting
Directivewhichgovernstheclassification ofpreparations according '
todegreeofrisk.
Article313)(a),nowincludesthenewlyintroducedcategoryof'.
"verytoxic".Itisalsodraftedmoreprecisely
(1).0-JN°L303,28.11.1977,p.23
(2)0JN°L259,15.10.1979,p.10
(3)CJN°L229,30.8.1980,p.57

andinagreementwithDirective73/173/EEConsolventslaysdowna
limitforimpuritiesthatarenottobetakenintoaccountfor
classification purposes.
Article3(3)(b),(c)and(d)governingclassification as"harmful",
corrosive"and"irritant"isbroughtintolinewithDirective
73/173/EECinrespectofthelimitsforthevolumesofthesubstances
tobetakenintoaccount.Finally,additionsaremadetoparagraphs
(c)and(d)soastodefinethescopeofthecategories "corrosive"
"irritant"asintheabovementionedDirective.>
> '-
Articles 2and3
TheseArticlesarecommontoallDirectives .
III.Consultation ofthepartiesconcerned
..TheproposalforaDirectivewasdraftedinclosecooperation with.
expertsfromtheMemberStatesandrepresentatives oftherelevant
industries .
IV.Consultation oftheEuropeanParliament andoftheEconomicand
SocialCommittee
PursuanttothesecondparagraphofArticle100oftheEECTreaty,
theopinionsofthesetwobodiesarerequired.

PROPOSAL FORACOUNCILDIRECTIVE
amending Directive 77/728/ESCof
ontheapproximation ofthe
laws,regulations andadministrative provisions
oftheMemberStatesrelatingtothe-
classification ,packaging andlabellingof
paints,varnishes,printinginks,adhesives and
similarproducts
THECOUNCILOFTHEEUROPEAN COMMUNITIES ,
HavingregardtotheTreatyestablishing theEuropeanEconomicCommunity
andinparticularArticle100thereof,
HavingregardtotheproposalfromtheCommission,
HavingregardtotheopinionoftheEuropeanParliament,
HavingregardtotheopinionoftheEconomicandSocialCommittee,
(1)WhereasArticle3ofCouncilDirective 77/728/EECcontainsprovisions
fortheclassification ofthepreparations accordingtothe
degreeofrisk;whereasfor"theclassification ofthe
preparations astoxicorharmfulreferenceismadetoCouncilDirective
73/173/EEC^onsolventsaslastamendedbyDirective80/81/EEC^;
whereasthereisnosuchreferenceforpreparations
regardedascorrosive andirritantbecausetheoriginalversionof
Directive 73/173/EECdidnotcovercorrosive andirritantsolvents;
(1)0JN°L303,28.11.1977,p.23
(2)0JN°L189,11.7.1973,p.7
G)0JN°L229,30.8.1980,p.57

-4-
WhereasnowthatthescopeofDirective73/173/EEChasbeenextendedto
covercorrosiveandirritantsolvents.Article3(3)(c)and(d)of
Directive77/728/EECmustbeamendedaccordingly ;
' <
WhereasinthewordingofthethirdindentofArticle3(3)(a)ofDirective f
77/728/EECaccountshouldbetakenoftheamendments madetoCouncilDirective ,«
67/548/EECof27June19676ntheapproximation ofthelaws,regulationsand !
administrative provisionsrelatingtotheclassification ,packagingandlabelling
ofdangeroussubstances^byDirective79/831/EEC;
-•'•■- r
t
WhereasthewordingofthethirdindentofArticle3(3)(a)ofDirective77/728/EEC,
hasproveddifficulttointerpretandshouldthereforebedraftedmoreprecisely ;
andaddedtp;whereasforthesamereasonadditions ,shouldbemadetothethird '
indentsofArticle3(3)(b),(c)and(d)respectively ofthatDirective; r
WhereastheMemberStatesshouldbringintoforcetheprovisionsnecessary
tocomplywiththisDirectivebythedatespecifiedfortheadoptionofa
Directivetosupplementtheamendments madetoDirective73/173/EECby
Directive80/781/EEC,
-HASADOPTEDTHISDIRECTIVE :
Article 1
Directive77/728/EECisherebyamendedasfollows: ' ■i'
1.ThetextofArticle3(3)(a),thirdindent,shallbereplacedbythefollowing:
oneormoreofthesubstanceslistedinneitherAnnexItothis
DirectivenorDirective73/173/EEC,butclassifiedasverytoxicor
toxicinAnnexIto,Directive67/548/EEC,iftheconcentration of
theindividualsubstances ,isinexcessof0,2%or,whateverthe
individual .concentration ,ifthetotalconcentration intheprepa­
rationisinexcessof1%.Impuritiesshallbetakenintoconsideration
onlywhentheirconcentration isinexcessof0,2
2.ThefollowingsentenceshallbeaddedtoArticle3(3)(b),thirdindent,and
■(c),lastindent:"Eachsubstance .shallbetakenintoconsideration to
calculatethetotalconcentration onlywhenitsconcentration is
inexcessof1%."
(1)O.J.N0196,,16.08.1967,p.1
(2)O.J.N°L259,15.10.1979,p.10

3.ThefollowingtextshallbeinsertedasthefirstindentinArticle3(3)(c)
asolventormixtureofsolventsclassified ascorrosiveby
Directive73/173/EEC,thepercentageofeachsolventbeing
calculatedinrelationtothetotalweightofthepreparation
asreferredtoinparagraph 2,or"
4.ThefollowingtextshallbeinsertedasthefirstindentinArticle3(3)(d)
.asolventor-mixtureof.'solventsclassified asirritantby
Directive73/173/EEC,thepercentageofeachsolventbeing
calculatedinrelationtothetotalweightofthepreparation
asreferredto'inparagraph 2,or" ,
5.ThefollowingsentenceshallbeaddedtoArticle3(3)(d),lastindent:
"Eachsubstanceshallbetakenintoconsideration tocalculatethetotal
concentration onlywhenitsconcentration isinexcessof2%."
Article2
TheMemberStatesshallbringintoforcethelaws,regulations and
administrative provisionsnecessarytocfjmplywiththisDirective
bythedatespecifiedforcompliancewiththefirstDirectivebased
onArticle10ofDirective 73/173/EEC.
TheyshallforthwithinformtheCommissionthereof.
Article3
ThisDirective -isaddressedtotheMemberStates.