Examine available information

Examine available information

The requirements of identification and examination of available information on mixtures is outlined in Articles 6 to 8 of CLP.

Once you have gathered all the basic and specific information concerning the concentrations and the hazards of the components of the mixture and the mixture itself, you will need to consider whether the information is relevant, reliable and sufficient for classification in accordance with CLP. 

 

Check your information package
  1. For every hazard, check that you have information either on each substance in the mixture or on the mixture itself. Note that for the majority of physical hazards, test data on the mixture itself is needed.
  2. Are the data consistent or are there any obvious discrepancies? For example, the safety data sheet (SDS) you have received might not be complete, or different suppliers may have contradicting data. In such cases, you should contact your suppliers for clarification.
  3. Cross-check whether the classification of the substances given in the SDS provided by your supplier corresponds to what is shown in the C&L Inventory regarding harmonised classification.  Although the self-classifications from notifications and registrations may differ, they can be used as a starting point to examine the classification from your supplier. If you have any doubt, contact your supplier.

 

What is "relevant, reliable and sufficient"?

If you have specific information such as test data on the mixture itself and/or on substances in the mixture, you need to consider what "relevant, reliable and sufficient" means.

To successfully define the hazard classification of your mixture, the information you base your decision upon should be of high quality.

The reliability of the information you have is very important for the outcome of your classification exercise. Information that is not scientifically reliable, for example because a study was incorrectly carried out or the wrong model was used, may lead to an incorrect classification.  Only reliable information should be used for classification. It is helpful to first assess the reliability of the information before assessing its relevance and adequacy.

Sometimes, even information not obtained by validated methods can still be valuable and considered in a weight of evidence analysis, but the assessment of this may require expert judgement.

You can read more about reliability, relevance and adequacy in Chapter R.4 of the Guidance on information requirements and chemical safety assessment.

Examine available information