Mills work to comply with formaldehyde rules

Some could be certified soon

Heath Combs -- Furniture Today, September 5, 2008

HIGH POINT — September is shaping up as an important month as the furniture industry continues to prepare for the pending new formaldehyde regulations in California.

The rules will limit formaldehyde emissions from composite wood panels — hardwood plywood, particleboard and medium density fiberboard (MDF), materials that are commonly used in furniture.

Because board suppliers must be approved through third-party testing to assure their compliance with the rules, many furniture producers have been worried that demand for compliant product would drive up costs.

The California Air Resources Board, or CARB, which is responsible for enforcing the measure, has estimated there are thousands of composite panel makers around the world, with at least 10,000 hardwood plywood plants and hundreds of particleboard plants in China alone.

Some of the first board mills in Vietnam are likely to have their certifications announced this month, officials with the agency report. Several mills are going through the certification process, said Jim Aguila, manager of the CARB's Substance Evaluation Section.

The agency would like to post a list of CARB-certified composite panel mills in Asia soon, Aguila said. The agency is in the process of making sure that such a listing would not violate contracts between third party certifiers and board mills, he said.

The Composite Panel Assn., which has certified mainly North American producers, has already begun listing board suppliers that have been approved, Aguila said. The third-party certifiers are required to list certified board mills once a year, but since the formaldehyde order takes effect Jan. 1, the first list isn't legally due until March 2009, he said.

"We want to make sure we aren't putting anyone in a tight legal position," Aguila said.

Furniture retailers in California will have until June 30, 2010, to clear out goods containing composite panel that doesn't comply with the standards. They could face fines of $1,000 to $10,000 per day, per violation for carrying non-compliant product.

The process of enforcement has not been determined yet, Aguila said. It may be modeled to CARB's Consumer Products Regulatory Program, which aims to reduce the amount of volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, from products including detergents, cleaning compounds, aerosol paints and other items. That program is staffed to take about 1,600 samples a year throughout the state, Aguila said.

As with other air toxics measures in the state, each of the 35 air quality districts in California are mandated with enforcing the formaldehyde measure.

Retailers and importers will have to obtain statements from their suppliers indicating that products comply with the new standard. Manufacturers who make furniture for sale in California will have to label their furniture with a stamp, tag, sticker, or bar code stating their goods are compliant.

"Our goal is compliance," said Dimitri Stanich, public information officer for CARB. "We have the authority to inspect cargo ships, distributors and paperwork to show they brought and asked for compliant wood. We can ask shop owners or buy a piece and test."

Some furniture suppliers have asked how the rule will affect e-commerce retailers. While the formaldehyde rule will only apply to product deemed for sale in California — not those shipped through the state for sale elsewhere — e-commerce retailers will be tracked, Aguila said.

"We have a system in place to track e-commerce purchases. There would be an element where we buy furniture or finished goods on the Internet and check them like we already do with consumer products," he said.

On the subject of strict liability, one that has been confusing to some in the furniture industry, Aguila said that means, stated simply, that fabricators, importers and distributors, among others, of composite wood panels or products, must use complaint panel.

"It's a legal approach to enforcement that all parties associated with the commerce of composite wood product would be held liable for a violation," Aguila said.

An online seminar for furniture retailers, organized by the Western Home Furnishings Assn., will be conducted on Sept. 25, from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time. It will describe elements of the regulation, retailer compliance requirements and enforcement details. Space is limited. To register, go to: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/287389634.

Another webinar has been tentatively planned for Sept. 23 specifically for importers and in conjunction with the International Wood Producers Assn., Aguila said.