PROP 65 Consulting services
Cal Prop 65 - The Enviropass Approach
The California Prop 65 list is continuously growing and maintained in the Enviropass' product compliance form that you are free to use while gathering Cal Prop 65 data from your supply chain. Further information on the California Proposition 65 is available on p65warnings gov.
Similarly to RoHS and REACH, Enviropass recommends a documentary approach with risk assessments of the supply chain to do California Proposition 65 testing and provide the right warning notice for California residents.
This approach offers the best money value and avoids numerous and expensive chemical analyses.
Enviropass can assist you in both:
- identifying the presence of substances in your products; and
- marking your products accordingly.
Request your free demo and see how Enviropass can assist you!
Prop 65 List and the California Regulation
The California Proposition 65, also called Cal Prop 65, Cali Prop 65 or simply Prop 65, stems from an old regulation called the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986.
The idea behind this act is that every Californian citizen has the right to know his exposure to hazardous chemicals. This approach is similar to the EU REACH SVHC list.
The primary target of the Cali Prop 65 is to protect drinking water from a list of chemicals, listed by the state of California.
The California Proposition 65 list is regularly maintained and updated by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA). Hundreds of chemicals have been listed over the years.
Why is there a Prop 65 Regulation?
Hazardous chemicals, known to contribute to cancer, birth defects, or reproductive harm, are used in many everyday consumer products. Think of adhesives, painting, solvent, some plastics, some drugs... even coffee! All of these products may contain hazardous substances.
Here are some examples of substances in the Prop 65 list:
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Many Prop. 65 substances are used in electrical and electronic equipment and other everyday products. Compounds of cadmium, cobalt, mercury, nickel, lead or hexavalent chromium are examples of these types of substances.
The Prop 65 Requirements
The manufacturers, producers, importers, suppliers or distributors are typically responsible for the Prop 65 implementation.
The retailers in California also have responsibilities, under certain conditions.
The Proposition 65 law - the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 - applies to you if you either have customers of consumer products or own a business of 10 employees or more in California.
The Cal Prop 65 law requires providers to notify the consumer whether a product contains at least one chemical known to cause health issues (cancer, birth defects, etc.).
Some of the chemicals in the Prop 65 list have no significant risk levels (NSRLs), or maximum allowable dose levels (MADLs). In this case, you don't have to notify the consumer if you can demonstrate that all of the present chemicals are below their NSRLs or MADLs levels. To do so, toxicology studies may be necessary.
If any substance in the Prop 65 list is contained, or likely to be present in your products, workplace, and or a public area, such as a hotel, then a specific warning is requested.
Three types of exposures require a warning:
- The consumer product exposure
- The environmental exposure
- The occupational exposure.
Different warning methods are available, like:
- On a posted sign on a shelf, at a hotel main entrance, etc.
- A pop-up before placing an online product order
- A label on the product itself.
For online sales, the warning information must appear on both the internet and on the consumer product itself.
The Prop 65 Safe Harbor Warning
As of August 2018, a new so-called safe harbor warning applies before exposure to chemicals, with obligations to:
- name at least one of the Prop. 65 substances contained in a specific product.
- provide the following link to the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) website: www.P65Warnings.ca.gov.
- have on the label a triangular yellow warning symbol along with the word WARNING.
The Prop. 65 warning can take various forms depending on the risks of exposure caused by the substances present in a product, which are either:
- Carcinogens;
- Reproductive toxicants;
- both carcinogens and reproductive toxicants.
It is also possible to provide a short-form warning.
The short-form warning is a valid option, under certain conditions.
Either you decide to use the short-form Prop 65 warning or the regular one, it may have to be provided in a language other than English, like Spanish.
How do I get Prop 65 Certification?
It is recommended to verify with your supply chain whether any chemical in the Prop.65 list is present in your product, especially for parts that can be in direct contact with the consumer under normal conditions of use, such as:
- buttons
- cables
- casings
- labels
- connectors
- screens
- batteries
- packaging items, etc.
A risk assessment can be necessary, to confirm the substance(s) on the Prop 65 list that may have to be declared.
Enviropass is here to assist you in this endeavor. Ask Enviropass for a free demo!
What if I don't Comply with Prop 65?
If you sell a product without safe harbor warning that does contain a chemical in the Prop 65 list, then you expose your company to lawsuits.
Some law firms are specialized in this type of lawsuits, and major distributors, such as Amazon, Costco, Pharmacy, Target, and Walmart have had to face legal proceedings.
As a result, the Prop 65 settlement payments go up over the years, to reach a total of tens of millions of dollars.
The image of non-compliant companies can also be severely damaged.