China will enact new standards from next month to help Chinese electrical and electronic product exporters meet strict environmental regulations set by the European Union.

EU standards, such as RoHS, or Restriction of the use of certain Hazardous Substances in electrical and electronic equipment, have become a barrier for Chinese manufacturers looking to extend their overseas business, senior government officials said at the China International Industry Fair at the Shanghai New International Expo Center in Pudong.

"We have already published a standard on control of the electronic products and will study how to replace hazardous substances in them," said Huang Jianzhong, an official with the economic reform and operation department under the Ministry of Information Industry (MII).

The standard, Regulation for Pollution Control of Electronic Information Products, will be implemented in March next year.

Before that, another standard, General Disassembly Requirements for Testing Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Products, will go into effect next month.

From 2002 to last year, the EU introduced or revised more than 400 regulations, of which 107 involved environmental protection. RoHS, which took effect in July, puts the legal responsibility for demonstrating compliance on the producers of finished electrical or electronic devices.

One month after it was enacted, the export of Shanghai's small home appliance dropped by 16 percent from the average over the past seven months.

Su Zhongmin, an official with the State Standardization Administration, said they have set up special teams with MII and other ministries to work on 10 other state standards.

(China Daily November 4, 2006)