CARB giving more time for industry to comply
By Heath E. Combs -- Furniture Today, November 30, 2009
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The California Air Resources Board has granted a six-month extension to give furniture retailers more time to clear inventories that don't comply with the first phase of the state's strict new formaldehyde emission standards.
The formaldehyde standards affect composite panel, a commonly used product in wood furniture and upholstery frames.
Distributors, importers and fabricators of finished goods, along with furniture retailers in California, now have until Dec. 31, 2010, to clear out non-compliant inventories, an agency advisory said. Previously, the sell-through was set to end on July 1.
Extended sell-through periods were granted across the spectrum of the composite panel industry affected by the new formaldehyde rule, which the state started phasing in on Jan. 1.
The extension gives some categories an additional 19 months from what was originally set as the sell-through dates.
State officials granted the extension because of the economic slowdown, which has made it difficult to clear all the inventory on hand, the advisory said.
The agency issued its first four-month sell-through extension in May to composite panel distributors.
“Based on information from affected associations and specific businesses, as well as (the Air Resources Board's) distributor survey, ARB staff has concluded that the four-month delay was not long enough to solve the problem,” the advisory said.
The agency said the extension only affects sell-through dates, and its delay is not meant to encourage increased import and sale of non-compliant product.
Bill Perdue, the American Home Furnishings Alliance vice president for environmental affairs, said the organization was pleased with the extension. He said CARB staff saw the pressure on inventory and need for relief and offered a commonsense solution.
He said the issue of floor samples needs to be addressed next. Changing out floor samples twice, once to meet Phase I sell-though dates and a second time for Phase II dates, will be costly, he said.
“I think CARB is listening and I think they understand the economics of what this presents,” Perdue said.
Another enforcement challenge involves how CARB will validate its methods for deconstructive testing, which its staff has indicated will be used to confirm chain of custody, he said.
Deconstructive testing protocol would require finished products to be disassembled in order to identify the type of composite wood product used as component parts, Perdue said.
Through the testing, a sample will be collected from each composite wood product identified in products, and then tested to measure potential formaldehyde emissions, he said. If the emissions measured don't meet the CARB limits, the agency can issue citations and penalties throughout the supply chain.
“This poses a significant liability for suppliers, fabricators, importers and retailers of finished goods offered for sale in California,” Perdue said.
A national rule similar to California's was introduced in the U.S. Senate in September. It would give the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency responsibility for testing, certification, recordkeeping and enforcement and would add a new section to the federal Toxic Substances Control Act.
-
California extends formaldehyde deadlines six months
Nov 13, 2009
Merinos Home Furnishings opening display room, Boyles addition
Ernest Warsaw, founder of Sheffield Corp., dies at 91
HOM Furniture adds flooring to six Twin Cities stores
‘Mega vessels' likely to boost capacity, stabilize freight rates
21 companies from Turkey, Taiwan and China to exhibit at Showtime
Featured Company
-
Wright Labels
Bill and Tom Wright founded Wright of Thomasville in 1961 on the idea that printing was a creative medium and the belief that "a promise made is a promise kept." The Wright brothers focused their attention on providing exceptional printing for the... more
VIEW ALL GALLERIES
