1999/178/EC: Commission Decision of 17 February 1999 establishing the ecological criteria for the award of the Community eco-label to textile products (notified under document number C(1999) 339) (Text with EEA relevance)

• Published date: 05 March 1999
• Date of Signature: 17 December 1999
• Subject Matter: Consumer protection,Environment
• Official Gazette Publication: Official Journal of the European Communities, L 57, 05 March 1999

|

1999/178/EC: Commission Decision of 17 February 1999 establishing the ecological criteria for the award of the Community eco-label to textile products (notified under document number C(1999) 339) (Text with EEA relevance)

Official Journal L 057 , 05/03/1999 P. 0021 - 0030

COMMISSION DECISION of 17 February 1999 establishing the ecological criteria for the award of the Community eco-label to textile products (notified under document number C(1999) 339) (Text with EEA relevance) (1999/178/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 880/92 of 23 March 1992 on a Community eco-label award scheme (1), and in particular the second subparagraph of Article 5(1) thereof,

Whereas the first subparagraph of Article 5(1) of Regulation (EEC) No 880/92 provides that the conditions for the award of the Community eco-label shall be defined by product group;

Whereas Article 10(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 880/92 states that the environmental performance of a product shall be assessed by reference to the specific criteria for product groups;

Whereas, in accordance with Article 6 of Regulation (EEC) No 880/92, the Commission has consulted the principal interest groups within a consultation forum;

Whereas the measures set out in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the committee set up under Article 7 of Regulation (EEC) No 880/92,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

The product group 'textile products` (hereinafter referred to as 'the product group`) shall mean:

textile clothing: clothing consisting at least 90 % by weight of textile fibres,

interior textiles: textile products for indoor use, consisting at least 90 % by weight of textile fibres, and excluding floor coverings,

yarn and fabric, for use in textile clothing or interior textiles.

Article 2

The environmental performance and the fitness for use of the product group as defined in Article 1 shall be assessed by reference to the specific ecological and fitness-for-use criteria set out in the Annex.

Article 3

The product group definition and the criteria for the product group shall be valid for a period of three years from the first day of the month following the adoption of the criteria.

Article 4

For administrative purposes the code number assigned to the product group shall be '016`.

Article 5

This Decision is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels, 17 February 1999.

For the Commission

Ritt BJERREGAARD

Member of the Commission

(1) OJ L 99, 11. 4. 1992, p. 1.

ANNEX

In order to qualify for an eco-label, the product as defined in Article 1 must comply with the criteria of this Annex, with tests carried out on application as indicated in the criteria. Where appropriate, other test methods may be used if their equivalence is accepted by the competent body assessing the application. Where no tests are mentioned, or are mentioned as being for use in verification or monitoring, competent bodies should rely as appropriate on declarations and documentation provided by the applicant and/or independent verifications.

The competent bodies are recommended to take into account the implementation of recognised environmental management schemes, such as EMAS or ISO 14001, when assessing applications and monitoring compliance with the criteria in this Annex.

These criteria aim in particular at promoting the reduction of water pollution related to the key processes throughout the textile manufacturing chain, including fibre production, spinning, weaving, knitting, bleaching, dyeing and finishing.

Functional unit

The functional unit, to which inputs and outputs should be related, is:

1 kg of textile product at normal conditions (65 % RH ± 2 % and 20 °C ± 2 °C - these norm conditions are specified in ISO 139 Textiles - standard atmospheres for conditioning and testing).

A. ECOLOGICAL CRITERIA

The ecological criteria are divided into two main categories, concerning textile fibres (A1) and processes and chemicals (A2).

A1. TEXTILE FIBRES

Fibre-specific criteria are set in this section A1 for acrylic, cotton, elastane, flax and other bast fibres, greasy wool and other keratin fibres, man-made cellulose fibres, polyamide, polyester and polypropylene. Other fibres for which no fibre specific criteria are set are also allowed, with the exception of mineral fibres, glass fibres, metal fibres, carbon fibres and other inorganic fibres.

The applicant shall supply detailed information as to the composition of the textile product. The criteria set in this section A1 for a given fibre-type need not be met if that fibre contributes to less than 5 % of the total weight of the textile fibres in the product. Similarly they need not be met if the fibres are of recycled origin. In this context, recycled fibres are defined as fibres originating only from cuttings from textile and clothing manufacturers or from post-consumer waste (textile or otherwise). Neverthelss, at least 85 % by weight of all fibres in the product must be either in compliance with the corresponding fibre-specific criteria, if any, or of recycled origin.

1. Acrylic

(a) The residual...