Jun. 5 – EU, GHS: Classification and labelling of chemical substances

HKDTC provides a useful reminder of the timeline for GHS in the EU:

Given the nearness of the application of REACH to chemical substance and preparation traders in the EU, some important legislation, covering the classification and labelling of chemicals, is in the process of being agreed by EU regulators. The new legislation is to be in line with the Globally Harmonised System (GHS) of classification and labelling; it is therefore of critical importance that Hong Kong businesses exporting to the EU become aware of this new proposed system along with their REACH obligations.

In accordance with the UN GHS initiative, the European Commission adopted its proposal for a Regulation on the classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures. The proposed Regulation incorporates the classification criteria and labelling rules agreed at UN level…

The proposed Regulation applies to substances and mixtures as well as their release by aerosols through a specific hazard class. In accordance with the GHS, the term “preparation” is replaced by “mixture”…

[T]he proposed Regulation defines a transitional period during which both it and the current legislation will co-exist. It stipulates that after entry into force, the deadline for substance reclassification is 30 November 2010 and for mixtures 31 May 2015. The current Directives on classification, labelling and packaging will be repealed on 1 June 2015. During the transitional period, enterprises may use either the system laid out in the current legislation or the proposed Regulation…

A copy of the proposed Regulation can be found at: here.

Click on the top link for the full article.

Note that these deadlines are similar to the ones recently annouced for the Republic of Korea (the new Korean deadlines are July 1, 2010 for substances and January 1, 2015 for mixtures respectively).

Nexreg has more information on GHS at the following link:

To speak to a Nexreg representative about how GHS or REACH will impact your company, please call or e-mail Nexreg at:

Nexreg Toll Free: 1-866-361-3032
E-mail:info@nexreg.com

Relevant Nexreg Compliance Links: Nexreg, GHS Consulting.

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