From the Canada Gazette:

An order deleting 11 substances from part I of the Non-domestic Substances List under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act has been published by Canada’s Minister of the Environment in the Canada Gazette.

The order also removes aceto(2-carboxyphenyl)(2-methoxyphenyl)oxotriazaalkene from part II of the list.

We will keep you informed on any further changes to the Non-domestic Substances List.

From the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety:

Top 5 questions about GHS answered

After years of anticipation, the implementation of the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS) is one step closer to reality in the United States (U.S.). This change has implications for Canadians and Americans alike, and raises many questions. Here are the top five questions – and the answers – that CCOHS is asked about the GHS.

1. What are Canada’s timelines for implementing the GHS in WHMIS?

This is the most common GHS question that CCOHS is asked and, unfortunately, the answer is that the implementation timelines for Canada are still unknown. Federal WHMIS regulators are working on finalizing their proposed changes to WHMIS to implement the GHS. Health Canada is expected to post detailed information on their website about how WHMIS may change, for public consultation. In addition to public consultation, Health Canada has identified these remaining steps:

• an economic analysis
• revision of the federal legislation, including the Hazardous Products Act and the Controlled Product Regulations
• revision of WHMIS regulations by the provincial and territorial governments

With Canadian laws often taking one or two years to be updated, CCOHS estimates that there won’t be new WHMIS laws until 2013 or later. Then it is expected that there will be a “transition period” for suppliers and employers to switch from old-to-new WHMIS requirements (possibly a two or three year transition period).

2. Are GHS safety data sheets (SDSs) accepted in Canada today?

Yes, they are, with a few important considerations.

For some time now the WHMIS program has had a policy to accept a number of different MSDS formats, including the 16-section GHS SDS format, in place of the 9-heading format required by the Controlled Products Regulations. However, it is very important to note that the MSDS/SDS must contain all of the WHMIS required content as specified in the Controlled Products Regulations (Schedule I, Column III). It is also important to note that the GHS hazard classification may not always be the same as the WHMIS classification and there are differences in terminology between the two systems. Therefore, care should to be taken to communicate messages that are consistent with the WHMIS hazard communication system.

3. Are GHS labels accepted in Canada today?

No, they are not. The National Office of WHMIS does not have a policy to accept GHS labels. There are some important differences in the label requirements of the two systems. For example, the WHMIS regulations require:

• the use of applicable WHMIS symbols – the GHS requires pictograms, but the pictograms are not identical to the WHMIS symbols;
• the use of a hatched border – the GHS does not require a specific label border; and
• reference to the material safety data sheet – there is no similar requirement in the GHS.

Note: It remains to be seen if the hatched border and reference to the SDS will be retained after the GHS is implemented in Canada.

4. I am a Canadian manufacturer shipping hazardous products to the U.S. How will changes to the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) Hazard Communication Standard affect me?

This is a good question. As an exporter of hazardous products to the U.S., you will have to comply with the new “GHS” requirements of the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard when they become law. Keep in mind that a multi-year transition period is expected, so you will have time to reclassify your products and prepare OSHA GHS compliant SDSs and labels. However, depending on factors such the number of raw materials/ingredients used in your products, and the number of SDSs and labels that you must produce or update, you may want to get started sooner rather than later.

On the other hand, if you are a U.S. company shipping hazardous products into Canada, you will have to continue complying with WHMIS laws until the GHS is implemented in Canada.

5. Should I be training on the GHS now?

The primary goal of training is that all target audiences know how to recognize and interpret label and/or SDS information, and take appropriate precautions. Until the new laws come into force, you should continue to train on your existing hazard communication system (Canadian WHMIS or OSHA HazCom).

If you are an American supplier, employer, or worker, you should check the OSHA website for current information regarding implementation of the GHS in the U.S., and the new Hazard Communication Standard requirements. Training resources will likely be published very soon.

If you are a Canadian supplier, employer, or worker, the CCOHS “WHMIS after GHS” courses will help increase your awareness about potential changes. However, company-wide training is not a good idea until the possible requirements for GHS implementation into WHMIS are published.

We will keep you informed with regard to any Canadian GHS updates.

From:  Chemical Watch

The US and Canada are working together in an effort to ensure consistent implementation of the Globally Harmonised System (GHS) of classification and labelling of chemicals. Speaking at GlobalChem Maureen Ruskin, director of the Office of Chemical Hazards at the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA), said that the US and Canada had formed a Regulatory Coordination Council and GHS implementation had been included in the current work plan. “The US and Canada will be working together to ensure what we do on GHS is aligned,” she stated.

While Canada is expected to be at least a year behind GHS implementation compared to the US, Ms Ruskin said that once it was implemented in both countries, the Council would work to ensure alignment, particularly on technical issues and the interpretation of data to ensure companies in the US and Canada classified chemicals in the same way.

Click on the link above for more information, including four actions the Council has agreed upon to coordinate GHS implementation in the two countries.

The U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has extended their review of OSHA’s implementation of the Globally Harmonized System (GHS).  The review has been extended another 30 days, so we are hoping that the new regulations will become live before the end of February.  However, the OMB can add further 30 day extensions into the future, so there is no guarantee that the new regulations will become live in February.

Once the regulations do become live, there will be a phase in period (likely either 2 years or 3 years) for companies to re-author their MSDSs (now called SDSs) and industrial chemical labels to the new format.

Canada has yet to release their draft regulations.  We are expecting they will do so once the final US regulations are enacted.

We will be monitoring the situation closely.  If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Nexreg.

From: Safety.BLR

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has submitted its revised hazard communication standard which would implement the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) October 25, 2011.

OMB has 90 days to approve the revised standard before the final rule is published in the Federal Register.

We will keep you informed of any regulatory changes that result from this proposed standard.

The fourth revised edition of Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS) is now available for download in pdf format here:

http://live.unece.org/trans/danger/publi/ghs/ghs_rev04/04files_e.html

From ECHA:

The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has published new Guidance on the compilation of Safety Data Sheets (SDSs). The document is now available in the Guidance section of the ECHA website.

This guidance provides information on:

• what is new in SDSs according to REACH by comparison with the previous legislation;
• issues to consider when compiling an SDS;
• details of the requirements for information to be included in each Section of an SDS, in particular detailing the changes arising from the revisions of Annex II of REACH;
• the timetables for implementation of Annex II and its amended Annexes;
• who should compile the SDS and what competences the author should have.

The Guidance is particularly useful to SMEs as well as other suppliers of substances and mixtures in the EU and EEA and will be published in 22 EU languages.

The guidance document can be downloaded here:

http://guidance.echa.europa.eu/docs/guidance_document/sds_en.pdf

From: OSHA

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited MM Industries for 38 serious safety and health violations at its Salem facility, including failing to guard machinery and provide personal protective equipment. The facility fabricates filtration systems. The company faces $102,600 in proposed fines.

Twelve serious health violations with proposed fines of $39,000 involve failing to have a written respiratory protection program; failure to have a written hazard communication program; failing to identify and label containers of hazardous chemicals; failing to cover lacquer containers; constructing a spray booth of flammable materials; and not providing information and training to employees on hazardous chemicals in the workplace. A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.

This company also faces twenty-six serious safety violations with proposed fines of $63,600 and two other-than-serious violations with no proposed monetary penalties.

Click on the links for more information.

From SEGOB:

On June 3, 2011, Mexico became the first country in the region to put the Global Harmonized System (GHS) for the Classification and Labelling of Chemicals GHS into practice. The GHS standard NMX-R-019-SCFI-2011 has 2 parts: the Hazard Communication program in Mexico and GHS implementation.

The Mexican government states the following as the main objective of the new GHS standard:

This standard establishes criteria for Mexicans to classify chemicals according to their physical hazards, health and the environment. It also establishes the elements of hazard communication standard chemicals and the requirements for labeling and data sheets for their safety. This standard applies to the entire Mexican territory to classify chemicals and is the basis for the implementation of Hazard communication systems (labeling, marking, safety data sheets, etc.) of the agencies of the Public Administration within the scope of its powers. The requirements and characteristics of the labeling of products classified by applying criteria contained in this International Standard will be those established in rules issued by the Public Administration entities within the scope of its powers. Based on the provisions of the Purple Book of the United Nations are exempt from the application of this rule: pharmaceuticals, food additives, cosmetics; pesticide residues in food and hazardous waste.

For more information on the standard, please visit the SEGOB website.