Mapping of potentially harmful chemicals on target to meet 2027 goal

In 2021, ECHA continued mapping registered substances to identify those requiring risk management or more data to verify hazards. 250 high-volume chemicals that had not been assigned to any regulatory pool in the chemical universe were assessed, which leaves around 1 300 where the need for regulatory action still has to be reviewed. This progress keeps us on target to assess all registered substances by 2027.

Helsinki, 16 March 2022 – In parallel, around 530 substances registered at lower production volumes (registered at 1–100 tonnes per year) were also assessed.

These actions bring us closer to understanding the regulatory needs of all substances registered above one tonne by 2027.

A new pool called ‘assessment of regulatory needs’ has been introduced to show which substances are undergoing a group assessment. In 2021, ECHA assessed 1 900 substances and categorised them based on their need for regulatory action.

As a result, 300 were identified as candidates for further risk management in the EU. Around 800 require more data to be generated to confirm their hazards before regulatory actions can start. The remaining 800 do not currently require further action.

ECHA published the first batch of the group assessments in December 2021. Group assessments can help companies predict the actions regulators are planning and prepare strategies to replace harmful chemicals with safer alternatives.

If you want to know the pools in which your substances have been assigned to, you can download a full list from ECHA’s website.

The annual report of ECHA’s integrated regulatory strategy, to be published later this year, will include a thorough analysis of the mapping process and the suggested regulatory actions.

Background

The mapping of registered substances, also called the chemical universe, helps Member States and EU authorities focus on substances of potential concern and identify appropriate regulatory actions. The mapping provides transparency on the work of authorities and the progress made in regulating chemicals in the EU.

Through the mapping, upcoming regulatory actions are more easily predicted and this helps companies to prepare in time.