RoHS prohibits use of certain substances and is therefore a green EU directive.
RoHS stands for “The Restriction on the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment”, or simply, the ‘RoHS’. It was adopted in February 2003 by the European Union. The RoHS directive took effect on 1 July 2006, and is required to be enforced and become law in each member state.

The Regulation implements EU Directive 2002/95 which bans the placing on the EU market of new electrical and electronic equipment containing more than agreed levels of lead, cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyl (PBB) and polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) flame retardants.

ENEC (European Norms Electrical Certifications) is the high quality European Mark for electrical products that demonstrates compliance with European safety standards. European Certification Bodies in the electrical sector have opened the ENEC European Safety Mark to all electrical product sectors. From 2008 ENEC Mark was expanded to household appliances.

Testing takes place in independent ENEC approved test laboratories worldwide, and in approved manufacturers’ laboratories. The ENEC Mark is a proof that:

• the product complies with applicable EN safety standard and performance testing requirement
• the manufacturer applies a quality system according to ISO 9000
• end products are re-tested every two years
• the manufacturer has a verified production control, e.g. factory inspections

The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a non-profit, non-governmental international standards organization that prepares and publishes International Standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies – collectively known as “electrotechnology“.

The IEC charter embraces all electrotechnologies including energy production and distribution, electronics, magnetics and electromagnetics, electroacoustics, multimedia and telecommunication, as well as associated general disciplines such as terminology and symbols, electromagnetic compatibility (by its Advisory Committee on Electromagnetic Compatibility, ACEC), measurement and performance, dependability, design and development, safety and the environment.

IEC standards are also being adopted as harmonized standards by other certifying bodies such as BSI (Great Britain), CSA (Canada), UL & ANSI/INCITS (USA), SABS (South Africa), SAI (Australia), SPC/GB (China) and DIN (Germany). IEC standards harmonized by other certifying bodies generally have some noted differences from the original IEC standard.

The International Dark-Sky Association is the authoritative voice on light pollution. IDA educates lighting designers, manufacturers, technical committees, and the public about light pollution abatement. They recognize that the best way to accomplish their goal of protecting and restoring our natural night environment and our heritage of dark skies is through promotion of quality outdoor lighting. It is in this spirit that they have developed the Fixture Seal of Approval (FSA) program for dark sky friendly fixtures.

The Fixture Seal of Approval provides objective, third-party certification for luminaires that minimize glare, reduce light trespass, and don’t pollute the night sky. IDA evaluates the photometric data of any luminaire submitted by its manufacturer. When the fixture is approved, the manufacturer receives a certificate and the Fixture Seal of Approval. Manufacturers may use the FSA seal to promote and advertise their IDA-Approved™ dark sky friendly products.