ECHA: PFAS restriction ‘one of the broadest restrictions proposed’ in EU history

Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden officially submit a restriction proposal for all per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the EU; European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) will publish the documents online on February 7, 2023

Germany submits bisphenol restriction proposal to ECHA

Germany proposes restricting bisphenol A (BPA), other bisphenols, and derivatives as additives in articles to 0.02% by weight; also to introduce release rates to prevent migration into environment or organisms; proposal now under review by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) Committee for Risk Assessment

Comment on EU CLP revision and proposed SVHCs

European Commission publishes draft amendment to the EU’s Classification, Labeling, and Packaging Regulation (CLP); adds classification of endocrine disrupting chemicals and adopts hazard classes from REACH; comment period until October 18, 2022; European Chemicals Agency proposes classifying 9 chemicals as substances of very high concern (SVHCs) including bisphenol S and melamine; comment period until October 17, 2022

Arguments by PlasticsEurope in BPA case “unfounded,” says Advocate General

EU Advocate General advises the General Court to reject the primary argument of PlasticsEurope in its case against the European Chemicals Agency’s (ECHA) identification of bisphenol A (BPA) as a substance of very high concern (SVHC); Advocate General calls the argument “in its entirety as unfounded”; this appeal is based on the classification as an environmental endocrine disruptor

EEB: At this pace, the EU will take centuries to regulate chemicals

European Environmental Bureau (EEB) analysis finds that it takes the EU two decades to regulate a chemical from start to finish; bottlenecks include industry submitting incomplete information, over-analysis by EU regulators, and the European Commission taking longer to decide about a Scientific Opinion than ECHA takes to draft it

Food contact chemical added to SVHC candidate list

European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) adds n-(hydroxymethyl)acrylamide to the Candidate List of substances of very high concern (SVHC); used in a wide array of food contact applications across Europe, Asia, Mercosur, and the US; obligates producers and suppliers within the EU to provide safety information and to notify ECHA

ECHA identifies 34 bisphenols for group restriction

European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) recommends 34 bisphenols be classified as substances of very high concern (SVHCs) as a group; three of the bisphenols already individually classified as SVHCs; for some bisphenols, more data necessary before classification; group classification can help avoid regrettable substitution

EU Court: GenX chemicals rightfully labelled as SVHCs

European Court of Justice confirms the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) is correct to classify a group of GenX chemicals as substances of very high concern (SVHC); chemical company Chemours has two months to consider appealing the verdict

Two food contact chemicals added to SVHC Candidate List

European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) adds four chemicals to the Candidate List of substances of very high concern (SVHC); two of the substances are known to be used in food contact applications; obligates producers and suppliers to provide safety information and to notify ECHA

ECHA webinar outlines assessments of chemical groups

Recorded webinar from European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) presents the agency’s work on assessing regulatory needs of groups of chemicals; provides overview of recently published reports