Neil Plumridge (Chair of the Environmental Working Party) has provided the following summary of recent Chemical Watch developments. In order to access links, you will need an account with Chemical Watch.
UK
- The UK Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) practice of sending ‘quality observations’ to UK REACH registrants following dossier evaluations – rather than a more detailed draft decision – has raised fears over the regime’s handling of compliance issues. In the HSE’s report on its 2022 evaluation activity, the executive said it did not issue draft decisions on any of the 13 compliance checks it performed. Instead, it made only ‘quality observations,’ letting registrants know when their dossiers “would benefit from additional information or clarity” needed to comply with data requirements.
EU
- European Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius has said the Commission is doing its ‘utmost’ to deliver the REACH revision ‘hopefully this summer’. – NGOs suggest REACH revision split to push through proposal
- Echa has picked aromatic brominated flame retardants, which includes the substance decaBDE, as candidates for an EU-wide restriction under REACH. But its review for a broader group restriction left several non-halogenated subgroups, including organophosphorus flame retardants, outside the scope of regulatory action.
- Hazardous chemicals top EEA product safety notifications
- Echa has formally recommended that the European Commission adds eight candidate list substances including lead to the REACH authorisation list – Annex XIV – in a move that could push industry to find safer alternatives. – Controversial inclusion of lead among other reprotoxic chemicals
- NGO calls for deadline for chemical bans in REACH reform
- Danish study finds PFASs in more than half of bike oils tested
- EU member states to evaluate 24 Corap chemicals in 2023–2025 Chemicals used in fuels, washing and cleaning products to face scrutiny
- ‘Bio’ and ‘eco’ banned from EU biocidal product names
- Major EEA enforcement project to target PFCAs in consumer goods
- An Echa-led review of extended one-generation reproductive toxicity studies (Eogrts) has found low dosing affects a fifth of cases and labs are failing to demonstrate proficiency.
- The EU General Court has delivered a major defeat to the European Commission with a ruling that cancels a REACH authorisation decision granted more than two years ago for several uses of chromium trioxide. The verdict deals a blow to Europe’s vast chrome-plating and surface treatment industries that use the SVHC – Potential for massive supply chain disruption for transport, defence industries.
- The European Commission will not need to significantly change current regulatory systems to accommodate the implementation of the essential use concept, a senior EU executive official has said. Speaking at Chemical Watch’s EU Regulatory Updates conference, Cristina de Avila, head of sustainable chemicals at DG Environment, said that the system in place for authorisation and restriction decisions – where the Commission and member states have the final say, based on advice from Echa and its committees – could be used also for essential uses. – Discussions ongoing about who will decide on essentiality.
- The European Commission is reviewing a comprehensive final report on the project to define the essential use concept and associated criteria to help phase out the most harmful chemicals. The 277-page text, which the EU executive asked consultancy WSP to produce, comes at a time of increasing pressure on the European Commission to publish the long-awaited REACH revision proposal by June so that the European Parliament can scrutinise it in the current term.
- Echa publishes ‘advice’ on new CLP hazard classes
- Germany’s federal risk assessment body rejects Efsa’s safe limit for BPA
US
- Proper implementation of amended TSCA is a top priority for the US EPA’s enforcement office as the law’s new requirements change the compliance landscape, an agency official recently told attendees at Chemical Watch’s TSCA developments conference. Compliance issues cropping up ‘all throughout’ the law, says US EPA official
- US EPA unveils first-ever national PFAS drinking water standards
- A Mississippi community group has filed a federal lawsuit against the US EPA, alleging the agency improperly approved the manufacture of a plastic-derived biofuel that ‘would result’ in a high cancer risk to exposed residents.
- As the US EPA ramps up its efforts to compel data generation to support its TSCA work, the agency has pledged to discuss test orders with industry recipients before issuing them, an agency official said at the American Chemistry Council’s (ACC) recent GlobalChem conference. – EPA commits to ‘dialogue’ on TSCA test orders before issuing them Agency considers shifting test mandates to before prioritisation
- US PHMSA proposes aligning with EPA rule on phasedown of HFCs
- The US EPA has told Chemical Watch it is working on a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Osha) to ensure cooperation on the implementation and enforcement of future TSCA risk management rules for the workplace.
- Republican states argue US Supreme Court precedent precludes TSCA action on climate
Canada
- Study finds most indoor products tested in Canada contained short-chain chlorinated paraffins
- Canada’s Cepa reform bill heads to full House with committee changes – Envi committee adds timeline to respond to CBI claims, pathway to remove watch list substances
Asia Pacific
- Malaysia plans revisions to chemical register guidelines
- Taiwan’s EPA publishes guidelines on registering new and existing substances
- India’s draft overarching chemicals rules on ‘back burner’, says advisor
