News story

Amendment to ecological criteria for paints and varnishes

New ecological criteria which apply to indoor and outdoor paints and varnishes in order to qualify for the EU eco-label.

The European Commission has published Commission Decision 2015/886 which amends Commission Decision 2014/312 regarding the ecological criteria which apply to both indoor and outdoor paints and varnishes to qualify to be awarded the EU eco-label.

The Decision clarifies the limit values for the concentration of formaldehyde in these products as being set at 0.001 %. The definitions of both VOCs and SVOCs, which are measured as part of the certification process, have been updated.

Laboratories carrying out measurements of VOCs should note that the measurements should now be carried out using the gas chromatographic method specified in ISO 11890 Part 2 (2013).

Published 18 June 2015