Health and safety.
For a list of specific health and safety data sheets, please refer to the data sheet section under the heading REACH quality protocol in the Information section.
REACH.
As a chemical substance, coal ash is subject to REACH – a European Union regulation concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation & Restriction of Chemicals. Under REACH, chemical manufacturers and suppliers have the responsibility to demonstrate that risks to human health and environment are being avoided or adequately controlled. The legislation applies to chemicals and materials manufactured or imported into the EU in quantities of one tonne or more per year. It requires manufacturers and importers to register with the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA).
All energy companies in the UK are registered under REACH as of 1 December 2010. However downstream users – those who buy coal-fired power station products – are advised to contact their suppliers to confirm their supplier (or importer) has registered the material. If a supplier ultimately does not know of a particular application and/or fails to register it, the use could be illegal.
COSHH.
The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) requires employers to protect employees and other persons from the hazards of substances used at work by risk assessment, control of exposure, health surveillance and incident planning. As with REACH, these requirements need to be met for the legal manufacture or supply of potentially hazardous substances.
If you want to find out more about how either the REACH or COSHH regulations affect you, please see our Health & Safety Datasheets for more information and guidance.
Please note: The UKQAA is not a supplier but a trade association and it is the responsibility of the substance supplier to supply the user with such information. As PFA and FBA are not considered ‘Dangerous Substances’ under the REACH regulations, there is no requirement to supply Safety Data Sheets (SDS) to the user, while most ash suppliers will provide a Substance Information Sheet (SIS).