10022006 業者呼籲制定美國版的RoHS法令

業者呼籲制定美國版的RoHS法令

隨著歐盟的六大限用有害物質(RoHS)指令已於今年7月1日生效，全球首屈一指的電子零件經銷商 - Newark InOne公司最近公開呼籲美國必須制定一套可與歐盟RoHS指令相提並論的RoHS法令。

◎ 加州RoHS法案 影響擴及其他大州
根據Premier Farnell 公司的子公司，同時也是美國最知名且符合RoHS的電子零件經銷商 - Newark InOne公司表示，雖然美國至目前為止尚未提出全國性的RoHS法令，但是加州已經先行制定了RoHS法案，案號為SB20/SB50，預計於2007年1月1日正式生效。加州RoHS法案的限用物質與管制設備並不如歐盟RoHS指令那般廣泛。加州只提出了歐盟RoHS指令所提出的六大限用物質中之四項危害物質(鉛、汞、鎘及六價鉻)，並且只管制經由加州零售商銷售的特定產品(螢幕對角線大於4英吋的膝上型輕便電腦、陰極射線管及電視…等) 。

Newark InOne公司認為，加州RoHS法案影響的範圍已逐漸延伸並擴及美國其他大州。另外，美國許多州在管制含汞產品方面相當積極，並制定了限用汞有害物質的法案，包括：加利福尼亞州、康乃迪克州、佛羅里達州、伊利諾州、緬因州、馬里蘭州、緬因州、紐約州、羅德島州、佛蒙特州以及華盛頓州等。

同時，該公司也表示，目前各州的立法已發展成為一股無可抵擋的趨勢，並漸漸對美國各行各業造成衝擊。

◎ 制定全國一致性的RoHS法令 當務之急且勢在必行
Newark InOne公司的總裁 保羅(Paul Tallentire) 指出，各州立法種類繁多而且與日俱增，顯然已經對於必須符合各州法案要求的電子廠商及經銷商造成許多不必要的額外負擔。保羅(Paul Tallentire)也指出：「難道我們要一直等待直到擁有50個不同的各州法案以後，才能制定全國一致性的標準嗎？」

另外，保羅(Paul Tallentire) 更表示，目前美國各州獨自立法造成的影響，除了廠商預料可能在推動符合RoHS法案時會遭遇的困難之外，全球競爭將是另一項值得關注的焦點。其他國家，例如：中國及南韓已經先後提出RoHS法規，此舉將導致美國的競爭力備受威脅。

同時，Newark InOne公司指出，許多證據顯示美國已經準備要制定全國性的電子設備廢棄物(e-waste)標準。美國國會最近由美國政府責任辦公室(Government Accountability Office, GAO)率領，進行聽取及研究有關電子設備廢棄物問題的專案報告，國會也承認各州東拼西湊的法規要求確實是加諸於製造廠商、零售商及資源回收業者身上的沉重負擔。除此之外，該公司表示，美國政府責任辦公室(GAO)已提出一項報告，建議儘速擬訂全國一致性的WEEE法令。

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資料來源：《美國ElectronicsWeekly.com網站》
詳細內容請參考： http://www.electronicsweekly.com/Articles/2006/09/20/39736/Company+calls+for+US+version+of+RoHS.htm

Company Calls for US Version of RoHS

On the heels of the European Union's Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive, which took effect on July 1, Newark InOne is calling for a comparable law to be enacted in the United States.

◎ California’s RoHS law spreads other states
Although no national RoHS-style legislation has been proposed yet in the United States, California has enacted its own RoHS rule, SB20/SB50, which takes effect on January 1. The state's rule is not as comprehensive as the EU's RoHS. It addresses only four of the six substances that the European Union RoHS rule addresses (cadmium, lead, mercury and hexavalent chromium) and applies only to a select group of products sold through California retailers (laptops, CRTs and TVs with screens greater than 4 inches in size), noted Newark InOne, a subsidiary of distributor Premier Farnell and a distributor of RoHS compliant electronic components, information and services in the Americas.

That rule’s scope, the company believes, is set to be expanded. In addition, state rules aimed at restricting mercury have been enacted in California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.

◎ A uniform national standard of RoHS is needed and urgent
While it’s difficult to argue that setting regulations on tech companies to make manufacturing more environmentally friendly is a bad thing, the gradual, state-by-state legislation that is currently the trend in the United States is dangerous to American businesses in many ways, according to Newark InOne.

"Increasing and varying state-by-state rules are already causing unnecessary complexity for electronic manufacturers and distributors who must try to track and meet them all," Paul Tallentire, Newark InOne's president, said in a statement. "Are we going to wait until we have 50 state laws with 50 flavours, before we enact a uniform national standard for our industry?"

Along with the difficulty that companies can expect to encounter when working toward compliance for RoHS-like laws, global competition is another concern stemming from the United States' current state-by-state method. Other countries, such as China and South Korea, have proposed RoHS-style regulations, setting the stakes higher for the United States to remain competitive, Tallentire argued.

Meanwhile, there is evidence that the United States is moving toward setting a national e-waste standard. Congress recently had the Government Accountability Office (GAO) conduct hearings and study the e-waste problem, Newark InOne noted, acknowledging the burden that "patchwork" state requirements were placing on manufacturers, retailers and recyclers. The GAO's report recommended that a national WEEE-style rule be written, the company said.

Detailed information, please refer to http://www.electronicsweekly.com/Articles/2006/09/20/39736/Company+calls+for+US+version+of+RoHS.htm