This article is brought to you Bloomberg BNA.

The Law on the Registration and Evaluation of Chemicals was formally promulgated May 22, completing the enactment of South Korea’s landmark chemical law that will start rolling out a European Union-style system of registration, evaluation, authorization, and restriction of chemical substances, the Ministry of Environment said.

President Park Geun-hye signed into law the REACH bill (No. 1904754), which was passed by the National Assembly April 30 after repeated delays over industry opposition (37 CRR 526, 5/6/13).

The law sets Jan. 1, 2015, as the starting date for annual registration.

The REACH law agenda comes down to the idea of establishing data on every large-volume industrial chemical substance. “The law’s stated objective is to realize preventive controls by establishing the ‘no data, no market’ principle,” Cho Eun-hee, chemical substances department director at the ministry’s Division of Environmental Health Policy, told BNA.

The ministry may require risk assessments for products with suspected chemical toxicity. Common household items such as synthetic detergents, fabric whiteners, cleansers, air fresheners, and adhesives are cited by the ministry as among product examples requiring risk communication. Also included are biocidal products such as insect killing sprays.

Foreign companies selling chemicals and chemical-based products to South Korea also face compliance challenges, including the requirement for maintaining a local representative as a channel of REACH-related communication, she said. “Based on the European Union’s experience with REACH,” she said, “supply chain management will be key to staying in compliance for all relevant chemical ingredients going through the supply chain.”

For the full article and more information please refer to the “Bloomberg BNA” link above

This notice brought to you by the OEHHA.

Effective May 24, 2013, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) is adding clomiphene citrate (CAS No. 50-41-9) to the list of chemicals known to the State to cause cancer for purposes of Proposition 651.

The listing of clomiphene citrate is based on a formal requirement by a state or federal agency that the chemical be identified or labeled as causing cancer or reproductive toxicity pursuant to an administrative listing mechanism2 provided under the Act. Clomiphene citrate has been identified or labeled to communicate a risk of cancer in accordance with formal requirements by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Regulations governing the listing of chemicals under the “formally required to be labeled or identified” mechanism are published in Title 27, California Code of Regulations, section 25902.

The documentation supporting OEHHA’s determination that the criteria for administrative listing have been satisfied for clomiphene citrate is included in the Notice of Intent to List A Chemical by the “Formally Required to Be Labeled or Identified” Mechanism: Clomiphene Citrate, published in the April 5, 2013 issue of the California Regulatory Notice Register (Register 2013, No. 14-Z). Please note that the CAS number for clomiphene citrate, CAS No. 911-45-5, cited in the Notice of Intent to List A Chemical by the “Formally Required to Be Labeled or Identified” Mechanism:  Clomiphene Citrate, is incorrect. The correct CAS number is 50-41-9.

For the full notice please refer to the “OEHHA” link above.

This article is brought to you by SpecialChem.

Minnesota’s legislature took a giant step toward protecting children by banning formaldehyde, a cancer-causing chemical, from children’s personal care products like lotions, shampoos, and bubble baths. The ban against the use of formaldehyde and formaldehyde-releasing preservatives would apply to products intended for children under eight. The legislation now moves to the desk of Governor Mark Dayton.

“Minnesota’s proposed ban on formaldehyde in children’s products is fantastic news for parents in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, but families in the other 49 states also deserve safe products free of cancer-causing chemicals like formaldehyde,” said Cindy Luppi with the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and Clean Water Action. “We need Congress to pass the Safe Cosmetics Act that would protect children across America from personal care products made with toxic chemicals linked to serious health disorders and diseases.”

Formaldehyde and formaldehyde-releasing preservatives are used in many personal care products, particularly shampoos and lotions, and have been linked to both skin sensitivity and cancer. The European Union restricts the use of formaldehyde in personal care products, and requires that products with formaldehyde or formaldehyde-releasing ingredients carry the label “contains formaldehyde.”

For more information and the full article please refer to the “SpecialChem” link above.

This article is brought to you by Plastics News.

Dropping their dueling bills, two senators on Wednesday introduced a new measure that would modernize the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) by requiring new tests for chemicals already on the market and granting broad new regulatory authority to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Congress has debated changing the chemical regulation law since it was originally signed in 1976, though the EPA announced reform initiatives in 2009, along with a new approach for evaluating and managing toxic chemicals safely under the existing law and a long list of chemicals the agency wanted to tackle first.

As introduced, the new measure would:

• Require safety evaluation for all active chemicals already on the market, which must eventually be labeled as high- or low-risk to human health or the environment.
• Require additional safety evaluation by the EPA for chemicals considered high-risk or particularly risky for children and pregnant women.
• Expand EPA authority to include the authority to obtain health and safety information from manufacturers, prioritize rules regulating chemicals, imposing safety requirements such as labeling, and phasing out or banning chemicals is necessary.
• Allow states and municipalities to have input on prioritization and safety assessment, including a timely response from EPA regarding local concerns.

For more information and the full article please refer to the “Plastics News” link above.

This article is brought to you by the ECHA.

ECHA is launching an additional CLH public consultation on the reproductive toxicity and carcinogenicity of etridiazole (EC No 219-991-8, CAS No 2593-15-9). New comments on these hazard classes are welcome.

The proposal for harmonised classification and labelling (CLH) of etridiazole was submitted by the Netherlands in February 2012 and was already subject to a public consultation which ended on 13 April 2012.

After the closure of that public consultation, concerns have been raised by the Committee for Risk Assessment (RAC) regarding reproductive toxicity. In particular, the relevance of the data on malformations and maternal toxicity induced by etridiazole for CLH is of special concern.

In addition, the interpretation of data concerning the carcinogenic potential of etridiazole is under RAC discussion.

For more information and the full notice please refer to the “ECHA” link above.

This article is brought to you by the National News Agency of Malaysia.

Malaysia will strengthen its international linkage through collaborative partnerships and cooperation in line with the Globally Harmonised System (GHS) implementation.

The GHS provides a basis for harmonisation of rules and regulations on chemicals at national,regional and worldwide level, an important factor for trade facilitation.

Deputy Secretary General of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, Datuk Nik Rahmat Nik Taib said in his opening speech at the GHS Review Conference for Southeast Asia here today, that the GHS is also a key tool to improve chemical safety for workers and consumers.

The GHS is also a system of classification of chemicals by types of hazard and proposes harmonised hazard communication elements, including labels and safety data sheets.

“The implementation of a chemical hazard classification and communication based on the GHS will definitely benefit governments, companies, workers and members of the public,” he added.

For more information and the full article please refer to the “National News Agency of Malaysia” above.

This notice is brought to you by the ECHA.

ECHA invites the parties concerned to comment on two new proposals for harmonised classification and labelling (CLH) on lenacil and boric acid. The public consultation will be open for 45 days and will end on 28 June 2013.

The CLH proposal on lenacil was submitted by Belgium. Lenacil is a herbicide and has no harmonised classification and labelling. The dossier submitter is proposing classification for environmental hazards.

The CLH proposal on boric acid was submitted by Poland. There is already a harmonised classification for this substance and the dossier submitter is proposing to revise the classification for reproductive toxicity, i.e. to remove the classification for fertility effects and to downgrade the classification for developmental toxicity. ECHA reminds the parties concerned of the ongoing public consultation (until 14 June) for two other borates for which the dossier submitter (The Nederlands) proposed a more severe classification than boric acid, for both developmental and fertility effects.

This article is brought to you by The National Law Review.

On May 9, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a Direct Final Rule identifying 15 chemical substances that will require notice prior to manufacturing, importing, or processing for an activity designated as a significant new use. These chemicals were flagged pursuant to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) significant new use rules (SNURs). The notices, referred to as Significant New Use Notices (SNUNs), must be submitted to EPA 90 days before a listed chemical is manufactured, imported, or processed for an activity designated as a significant new use. EPA states that this will provide the agency with an opportunity to evaluate the intended use and determine whether it is necessary under TSCA to prohibit or limit the activity before it occurs.

While chemicals in the rule include those that can be employed in a broad range of uses, of particular interest is the listing of one compound used in natural gas and oil well drilling and hydraulic fracturing to eliminate bacteria in the water that produce corrosive by-products. EPA included this compound due to its potential toxicity to aquatic life at concentrations above 11 parts per billion (ppb).

The rule is effective on July 8, 2013, unless written “adverse or critical” comments on any of the SNURs, including potential alternatives and likely financial burdens, are received on or before June 10, 2013. Those chemical substance(s) and new use that receive comments or notice of intent to comment will be withdrawn before the effective date and a proposed SNUR for the specific chemical substance will be issued with a 30-day comment period. For purposes of judicial review, the rule is promulgated on May 23, 2013.

For more information and the full article please refer to “The National Law Review” link above.

This article is brought to you by BusinessMirror.

Local chemical businesses stand to reap rewards from the imminent Asean Economic Community (AEC) if they can successfully address several challenges, say industry executives.

Prof. Supawan Tantayanon of Chulalongkorn University’s science faculty said Thailand’s chemical industry has competitive advantages in terms of human and natural resources compared with its Asean neighbors.

Supawan was speaking on the topic of “Green Chemistry, Safety and Responsible Care and How the AEC Will Affect the Region’s Chemical Industry” on Tuesday’s launch of Chemspec Asia 2013, to be held in Bangkok this September. Ethylene, used in automobiles and home appliances, is vital to the development of the country’s petrochemical industry, she said.

However, Supawan noted that Thailand still lacks a technological edge in research and development (R&D).

The industry will shift its focus to Asean markets, but Petcharat warned that the chemical industry needs to upgrade its international certification, as the AEC will implement international rules and regulations governing chemical products.

For more information and the full article please refer to the “BusinessMirror” link above.

This notice is brought to you by the ECHA.

With only a few weeks to go until the second REACH deadline, all registrants should be making the final arrangements for the submission of their dossier. At this stage, lead and member registrants should have already decided how to meet the relevant information requirements and the compensation for sharing data and related costs, allowing the lead to provide the members with the corresponding REACH-IT joint submission token.

The lead registrants of the SIEF are encouraged to submit their lead dossier as soon as possible to allow member registrants time to submit their own dossiers – members can only submit their own dossiers when the lead registrant has provided the members with the REACH-IT joint submission token and the lead dossier has passed the ‘business rules’ step in REACH-IT.

Registrants who still have difficulties in meeting certain registration requirements can contact the ECHA Helpdesk, and ECHA will provide a response as soon as possible. Registrants that have an exceptional situation regarding their ability to register (e.g. scientific tests are still being conducted), and who potentially qualify for one of the Directors’ Contact Group (DCG) exceptions, should urgently submit a request through the ECHA Helpdesk contact form and provide a justification of their situation. They will get their response within five working days.

If there are data sharing disputes, ECHA has provisions in place to assist registrants. However, registrants are reminded that a dispute should be submitted only as a last resort. Further information and webforms to submit a dispute are available on ECHA’s website.

For more information, advise and the full notice please refer to the ECHA link above.