The future of DIY antifouling:
it’s apparently in your gloves
Antifouling paint product regulations set to change signifi cantly over the next few years
R
egulations that pass
or fail DIY antifouling
paint products for the
European market will be
changing signifi cantly over
the next three to fi ve years.
The established view that boat
owners can use antifouling paints
in a responsible way, following the
label instructions and wearing
appropriate protective clothing –
such as gloves – is being
challenged, and manufacturers
need evidence to support this
position. The implications for boat
owners are signifi cant, with
potential restrictions of antifoulings
to professional use only and
revised products for the DIY sector
which have limited product
performance or life time. This will
increase costs to the boat owner
and potentially threaten UK waters
with an increase in the translocation
of invasive species due to a lack of
effective fouling control.
Gareth Prowse, UK regulatory
affairs manager, with responsibility
for AkzoNobel’s brand International
Paint, said: ‘it could mean that
tried-and-tested biocide antifouling
products are not re-registered.
We’re coming to the point where
each of the active ingredients we
use will or will not be approved for
use in our products.’Duty of care
Gareth continued: ‘Over the years,
we’ve seen an increasingly
conservative approach to risk
assessments where there is
uncertainty of data about the
actual impact on the environment
or individuals using the product.
This is a very sensible approach:
paint manufacturers and
regulators alike have a duty of
care to protect those that use
antifouling paints and the
environment, but recently it’s
becoming so conservative that the
assumptions within the riskNeglect to apply antifouling and this is the inevitable resultassessment may not refl ect actual
practice. For example, it’s
expected that individuals will not
take care of themselves. We
believe that antifouling paints have
been used safely and effectively
by experienced boat owners for
many years.’
Gareth said the battle to show
that regulators can trust DIY users
has ‘to some extent already been
lost’ as this is ‘opinion, not fact’.
He added: ‘Now the presumption
is that people don’t wear gloves
or protective clothing. For us to
pass the recommended EU risk
assessments, we have to either
scale back the active ingredients,
which will affect the product’s
performance, or provide proof
of careful use.’
Gareth, who is also chairman
of the British Coatings Federation
(BCF) Marine Coatings Group,
said: ‘The BCF are trying to
generate data to better
understand how people use these
products and what protective
equipment they do use when
painting.’ The online ‘DIY Use of
Antifouling Paints in the UK’ survey
will run until 30 November 2015 athttp://www.surveymonkey.com/r/
NPNB6NW. Responses will form
the basis for a report from the
BCF, providing an overall picture
of the DIY application of AF paints
in the UK. This will then be used
as a basis for determining what
further support activity is required.
Gareth added: ‘Our concern is
that we could end up withdrawing
products that can be and are
used safely because of the risk
assessment being too conservative
due to a lack of data, rather than
genuine risk.’
International Paint is expecting
the fi nal biocides to be approved
at the end of this year or early next
year. The new product regulations
will come in over the next three to
fi ve years.
Royal Yachting Association
cruising manager Stuart
Carruthers said: ‘Member states
are currently conducting a review
of the biocides that are covered
by the Biocides Regulation of- We acknowledge that it
is important to keep the list of
regulated biocides under review,
but we would be concerned
should the review result in any
proposal to ban the use of,
or weaken, antifouling paint
on recreational craft, which
could undermine efforts to
combat the threat of invasive
non-native species.’‘Totally different’
David Ashley, director of
Nanotech SST, believes recent
developments with nanoscience
will solve the problems with
antifouling: ‘We’ve been
involved in a four-year trial with a
completely new type of antifouling.
It’s totally environmentally friendly
and essentially silicone based,
and it works in a completely
different way from conventional
antifouling. The growth is just
unable to adhere to the surface.
It’s easy to apply – it can go on
hard antifouling gelcoat and
there’s a trial under way in New
Zealand to see how it works on
aluminium boats.’
It is primarily designed for
powerboats as sailboats may be
unable to accomplish the speed
required for the water fl ow to clear
the debris. A trial involving a
Swordsman 37 powerboat in Port
Solent is still working well after
three years and seven months.
Nanotech Antifouling’s debut
at the Southampton Boat Show
received a ‘good response’
although David acknowledged ‘it’s
a bit pricey right now’ at around
£500 a litre – but a litre is promised
to go a long way. He said: ‘You
need between 30g and 50g per
square metre. A litre would do
somewhere around a 30ft boat.’
Once the product can be
produced in greater volume it
will bring the price down.
David added: ‘I believe that
in the States this year, copper
antifouling is going to be
banned. We’re among the
many companies that have
been searching for a solution.’News and current affairs from the world of boating
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