EU notifies WTO of proposed revision of the CLP regulation

On 17 April 2023 the European Commission notified proposed revision of the Classification, Labelling and Packaging (CLP) Regulation to the WTO. The proposal was originally published on 19 December 2023.  The revision of the CLP and the planned revision of REACH are important parts of the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability (CSS) framework which again is a key building block of the European Green Deal. The revision package aims to:

• Ensure that all hazardous chemicals including those with endocrine disruptive (ED), persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT), very persistent and very bioaccumulative (vPvB), persistent, mobile and toxic (PMT), and very persistent and very mobile (vPvM) properties are classified adequately and uniformly throughout the EU. The new hazard classes are already implemented through the Delegated Act of 20 April 2023. Read more here.

• Improve the efficiency of hazard communication by making labels more accessible and understandable for users of chemicals. Provide companies with more flexibility and thereby reducing the administrative burden without lowering safety levels.

• Ensure that the rules on chemical hazard classification and communication are applied by all relevant actors in the supply chain.

The revised regulation will be clearer on labelling issues such as readability and digital labelling. It will also increase compliance with CLP for online sales of chemicals. This will help businesses, including SMEs and the free movement of substances and mixtures within the EU market. The revision will introduce the following:

• Better and faster processes for all actors to inform on hazards of chemicals placed on the EU market.

• Improved communication of chemical hazards, including online, through simpler and clarified labelling and advertising requirements.

• The right for the European Commission (in addition to Member States and industry) to develop classification proposals on potentially hazardous substances, speeding up the pace at which hazardous substances can be identified.

• The first ever specific rules for refillable chemical products so consumers buy and use these products (e.g. home care chemicals) in a safe way.

The proposal in currently undergoing the Ordinary Legislative Procedure. The EU Parliament and the EU Council are expected to formally adopt the new legislation in the first quarter of 2024.