The European commission is consulting until 15 May on whether the EU should allow 23 additional exemptions to a ban on hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment due to enter force on 1 July under the RoHS directive.

Latest exemptions proposed by industry include Swiss watch components, tin-lead solder used in the manufacture of professional audio equipment and loudspeaker systems, and smart card readers.

The RoHS directive permits exemptions where there are no practical alternatives to hazardous materials. This is the fifth list of applications for exemptions to be published by the commission, the fourth having emerged last September..

In total, nearly 100 exemptions to the RoHS ban have now been requested, additional to a small number specified in the original directive. So far only a handful have been approved in two decisions published last October.

The process of refining the RoHS directive exemptions list has sparked controversy with the European parliament, which has accused the commission of being unduly influenced by potential costs. In January, the assembly launched legal action to challenge an exemption granted for the flame retardant deca-BDE.

For more information, visit the European commission website