Chemical regulatory newsletter November 2023

REACH update

REACH revision left out of European Commission's 2024 work programme signals further delay 

We discussed the impact of this delay on industry and the proposed changes during NCEC's 50th celebration, and our panel suggested that the uncertainty around these changes could lead to businesses moving their products out of the EU market.

Three key UK REACH updates from the ATRm

The UK Government released a short policy paper on the progress they had made and their current policy direction of the UK REACH Alternative Transitional Registration model (ATRm). The announcement reaffirms the aim of the ATRm, which is to allow UK companies who held EU REACH registrations prior to 1 January 2021 to avoid paying for the same data again for the same registrations under UK REACH.

The announcement does not go into detail about how this will be achieved, however, there are three key points we can take from it that you can read here.

While this announcement is a welcome restatement of the commitment to the ATRm there is no real detail on how this will be implemented and industry will have to continue to wait to see what this will mean for their regulatory burden.

At Ricardo, we have strong ties within the industry, the government and the policymakers. Combined with in-depth knowledge of the global chemical marketplace and its interactions with stakeholders, we can help you to understand what your requirements are, assist you with your REACH registrations, offer dossier improvement, evaluation support, environmental chemistry and toxicology services to help with choosing the right assessment method and help you keep abreast of upcoming changes.

Read more on the three key updates from ATRm

1 month left until the industrial-use poison centre notification deadline

69% of attendees during our latest webinar on poison centres said that their notifications were not up-to-date.Poison centre notification deadline for industrial use products is 1 January 2024, and it is important to understand what you now need to do if you have been delaying your notifications until this deadline.

It is also really important to remember that an industrial mixture is only used in industrial applications, so you may not be eligible to take advantage of the reduced submission requirements.

Remember, if you were benefitting from the transitional period, but have changed any of the following aspects of your product since last notification, then your transition period has been invalidated:

You now need to notify these product via the ECHA portal.

If you are unsure if your product falls under industrial use or the difference between limited vs full submissions, watch our webinar on industrial-use poison centre notifications here.

We offer a full poison centre notification service for companies that have an obligation to notify their hazardous mixtures and biocides.

GB MCL List updated with 98 new classifications

The GB mandatory classification and labelling (MCL) list gives information on the classification and hazard labelling ofthe substance and is legally binding in GB.

If you are classifying a substance or a mixture that contains a substance that appears in the GB MCL List, then you must use the mandatory classification and labelling within your calculations.

We now have significant divergence within chemicals in the GB vs EU market. 

It is already a lot to monitor and many businesses are unfortunately unaware of everything that is changing and how this impacts their product portfolio. 

54% of respondents during our recent webinar said they don't know enough about GB divergence and are yet to start preparing for this. Our regulatory experts believe divergence is only going to increase further and might result in a need to update your SDS, Labels, REACH dossiers and poison centre notifications.

If you were taking advantage of the transitional period post Brexit and are yet to create your GB SDSs, we recommend doing so as soon as possible to maintain continued market access. We also recommend continously monitoring regulatory lists. Our horizon scanning and compliance reporting tool can perform a substance inventory check and identify whether your substances appear on any global regulatory lists. It provides the results in a clear, easy-to-read report, where you can quickly determine the most recent status of your substances. Download a sample of our compliance report here.

Gold standard climate disclosure framework released by the Transition Plan Taskforce

The UK’s Transition Plan Taskforce (TPT) ‘gold standard’ climate disclosure framework and implementation guidancehighlights the key components that should feature in a robust and credible climate transition plan and aims to provide organisations with best practice guidance to help accelerate their decarbonisation journeys. Read the full news here.

The TPT is proposing that companies should publish one transition plan this year with an update in 2026. Key information relating to the plan should be included in financial reporting in 2024 and 2025.      

To speak to a member of our team regarding assistance with regulatory compliance, emergency response or sustainability, please contact us.