Chemicals & Plastics

November 7, 2024, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has officially announced the 32nd batch of 1 substances of very high concern (SVHC), bringing the total number of substances on the SVHC list (also known as the Candidate List) to 242.

The Global Chemical Inventory Search (GCIS) developed by CIRS Group supports users to search the latest inventory of chemicals globally by entering CAS number or substance name in both Chinese and English. It also provides obligation analysis for global chemical compliance.

The US EPA is seeking public nominations for scientists and technical experts to participate in the peer review. Nominations are due by October 18.

Six substances added to the SVHC Candidate List; 22 chemical substances set for upcoming REACH registration testing approval; public consultations launched on CLH proposals for two chemicals.

On May 16, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) launched a public consultation on UK REACH, which remained open until July 25.

The deadline for feedback on this proposal is set for October 18.

The European Commission announced updates to Annex XVII of the REACH Regulation with new restrictions on N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMAC) and N-ethylpyrrolidone (NEP). It submitted Notification G/TBT/N/EU/1079 to the WTO on July 30, 2024. These changes are set to take effect 20 days after publication in the EU Official Journal.

On July 23, 2024, the Ukrainian government approved the Ukrainian Technical Regulation on Chemical Safety, modeled after EU REACH. This requires the registration of chemical substances produced or imported over one ton annually. The regulation becomes effective on January 23, 2025, six months after its approval.

On August 6, 2024, the US EPA issued a landmark emergency order banning the pesticide DCPA (also known as Dacthal) nationwide.

Changes involved the renaming of chemicals to align with their international CAS identifiers, affected over 90 substances and were implemented between July 19 and 20, 2024.

The Canadian Department of Environment, under section 71(1)(b) of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act of 1999, has issued a new notice. This notice requires relevant parties to submit mandatory data on 312 types of PFAS that were produced, imported, or used in products exceeding certain thresholds during the year 2023, by January 29, 2025.

Public consultation on changes to the administrative fees for UK REACH registrations will end on September 16, 2024.

On July 24, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a proposal to designate five chemicals as high-priority substances for risk assessment under Section 6(b) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).

On July 23, 2024, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) announced adjustments to administrative fines under the EU REACH Regulation, effective from July 22, 2024. This update aims to increase transparency, ensure fairness in fee structures, and align fees with actual business costs.