Chemical's Savings

However, after of the heavy dispute over the EU commission's proposed Reach programme (to check and register chemicals, which has been watered down in favour of industrial demands) now a study by the Danish research and consultancy organisation DHI comes to the conclusion that by year 2017 annually 150-500 million euros will be saved in environmental costs when chemicals are surveyed according to the Reach programme. However, the chemical industry is sceptical and says that an environmental cost assessment (as done by DHI) is speculative, at best. The European chemical industry council CEFIC comments that the study didn't account for the ever strengthening environmental legislation and improving technologies. Wiebke Rögener adds in here piece for Süddeutsche Zeitung (2.3.2006) that taking into account health care costs from prevented treatments all will sum up to 30 billion euros in 30 years. Well, the industry reckons with costs of some two billion euros in a decade. That should make clear: A tight Reach scheme will bring the most benefits and savings.