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April 4, 2011

Lynn L. Bergeson, “RoHS Recast: How Did Nanomaterials Fare?,” Nanotechnology Law & Business, Volume 7, Issue 4.

Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.

Several types of nanoscale materials recently dodged a bullet as the European Parliament declined to ban nanosilver and long multi-walled carbon nanotubes in the European Union’s Directive on the Restriction and Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment, (more commonly known as “RoHS”). For reasons not entirely clear, detractors of these nanoscale materials tried, and failed, to ban them outright in the RoHS Recast initiative. For nano stakeholders, while the news is good, the process serves as a cautionary tale of the shape of things to come in forthcoming legislative initiatives in the European Union, and likely elsewhere.