uced by Envirowise telephone 0800 585794 or at www.etbpp.gov.uk Notes to Editors 1. Trichloroethylene is manufactured by several companies. The main UK manufacturer is INEOS Chlor. The main global manufacturer is the US company Dow. It is estimated that up to 10,000 workers may be exposed to trike in the UK. 2. The vote on the European Union package of classification changes took place on 25 January 2001; adoption and publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities is expected to take place around the end of June. The change will be implemented into UK law, via the Chemicals (Hazard Information and Packaging for Supply) Regulations, in Spring 2002, with a transitional period to 30 July 2002, to account for products already in the supply chain and to allow time for suppliers to reclassify and relabel. 3. Category 3 carcinogens are substances that cause concern for humans owing to possible carcinogenic effects, but in respect of which the available evidence is not adequate for making a satisfactory assessment. Category 3 carcinogens are not included in the COSHH definition of "carcinogen". Category 2 carcinogens are substances that should be regarded as if they are carcinogenic to humans. After a long scientific debate among EU scientists, Member States have now agreed that the evidence for trike justifies a Category 2 classification, based on evidence from laboratory studies in rodents and epidemiological investigations. Trike vapour, if inhaled, can also cause a range of effects, from drowsiness through to causing death at very high exposures. 4. Category 1 and 2 carcinogens are subject to the COSHH Carcinogens Approved Code of Practice (ISBN 0 7176 1670 3, ref. L5). Employers must consider whether it is reasonably practicable to prevent exposure to a carcinogen by using an alternative substance and, if not, whether it is reasonably practicable to enclose the process totally. 5. New legislation is planned by the Departme...
