Assessing chemicals in groups has sped up authorities’ work, with assessments for 1900 substances finalized in 2021. For around 300 of these, risk management actions could begin immediately.

ECHA’s fourth report under its Integrated Regulatory Strategy has been released, showing that considerable progress has been made on accelerating the pace at which regulatory actions are identified for substances of concern.

In 2021, assessments were finalized for more than 1 900 substances, mostly grouped based on their structural similarity. This was 30 % more than in 2020. Around 300 of these substances require risk management measures. Some need to be restricted and have been included in the European Commission’s Restrictions Roadmap. The remaining 800 need more data to be generated, and around 350 of these are expected to move to risk management in the future.

Since group assessments became the focus, from 2019 to the end of 2021, a total of about 3 800 substances have been assessed – including 134 phthalate and phthalate-like substances and 148 bisphenols. The first batch of 19 group assessments was published at the end of 2021 and covered more than 450 substances.

The regulatory needs of almost 1300 high-volume substances (above 100 tonnes per year) remain to be assessed. The assessments will continue to feed into the roadmap and directly contribute to the aims of the EU’s Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability and the Green Deal.

ECHA’s report also highlights a steep increase in substances needing harmonized classification and labelling (CLH), with the number tripling in 2021 compared to 2020.

What Companies Should Do?

Since hazards need to be confirmed before risk management actions can start, and more data is often first needed, companies need to proactively update their registrations with up-to-date information to avoid regulatory actions being planned based on outdated data.

Besides, companies should proactively review and update data in their registration dossiers, as the information they provide is the basis for the assessment of regulatory needs.

Reference link: ECHA

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