New EU rules governing the use of chemicals could be more far reaching than many firms think, according to environment minister Phil Woolas.

Writing today on BusinessGreen.com, Woolas advised that organisations should to act now to assess how the new registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemicals programme (REACH) could impact them and what measures they should take to ensure they are compliant with the legislation.

"If you think that REACH will only affect big businesses who deal in large quantities of chemical products - then think again," he said. "If you use chemicals to keep your machinery operating and your premises clean, if you import products like cars or batteries, or if you receive substances containing chemicals through a supplier and use them in an unusual way – then it's likely you'll need to take some action under REACH."

Under the legislation all firms manufacturing or importing over one tonne of chemicals a year, be it in its original state or in other products such as paint or batteries, have to register with the European Chemicals Agency in Helsinki.

Woolas advised firms required to register should take advantage of a pre-registration period that runs up until December 1st, which requires them to initially provide limited information about the chemicals they are using in order to take advantage of a staggered approach to filing full registration documents. He warned that those firms that fail to pre-register will need to register substances fully immediately after 1 December 2008 and will be required to stop the manufacture or import of the unregistered chemicals while this registration process is completed.

He also said that firms should also investigate if they will be indirectly af fected by the legislation, advising that for businesses relying on a supplier for chemical products "it's a good idea to get a better idea of which substances you rely on, and where they are imported from", in order to ensure supply will not be disrupted.

Trevor Kilner, associate consultant at green advisory firm WSP Environmental, said that while most chemical firms were well prepared for complying with REACH many other sectors were less aware of the legislations implications. "The major manufacturers and importers are pretty well organised," he said. "But REACH also applies to finished products, such as ink cartridges, toiletries, paint, adhesives, and so on. Awareness amongst retailers and importers of those products appears to be much lower."

He warned that those firms that fail to pre-register their chemicals could see serious disruption to their supply chains and business activities as a result. "If you miss the deadline you have to put in a full registration before you can supply the chemical again," he said. "The full registration requires a hazard assessment, an exposure assessment and a full safety assessment for all applications of the chemical – all of which will take time. It would lead to major disruption of a firm's operations."

Businesses dealing with potentially hazardous chemicals were also advised to treat the advent of REACH as an ideal opportunity to step up efforts to find less harmful alternatives. "REACH actually stands for the registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemicals," said Kilner. "The intention is ultimately to use REACH to take some of the more hazardous products out of the market… it is wise for firms to consider how they would deal with certain products being made unavailable or only being available under restricted conditions."