ECHA Weekly - 28 June 2023

ECHA’s committees: EU-wide PFAS ban in firefighting foams warranted

Our Committee for Socio-Economic Analysis (SEAC) has adopted its final opinion supporting a gradual ban on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in firefighting foams. The restriction could reduce PFAS emissions into the environment by around 13 200 tonnes over 30 years.

Listen also to our topical Safer Chemicals Podcast with the highlights from the June meetings.

REACH

Info session on PFAS restriction proposal: all Q&As now online

We have published the second and final batch of questions and answers from the online info session. This batch focuses on the content of the proposal and replies have been prepared by the five national authorities.

The first batch of Q&As was published in early May and focuses on the consultation, the opinion-making in ECHA’s committees and the REACH restriction process.

You still have time to have your say on the proposed restriction through our ongoing consultation until 25 September 2023. We look forward to receiving substantiated and evidence-based information.

Call for evidence: screening report on trixylyl phosphate

New substance evaluation conclusions published for CoRAP substances

N-pentan-2-ylidenehydroxylamine (EC 484-470-6, CAS 623-40-5) was added to the Community rolling action plan (CoRAP) list in 2022 and evaluated by Germany.

Restriction on lead in PVC published

European Commission has published the final text of the restriction in the Official Journal of the European Union. 

CLP

Ad hoc consultation on harmonised classification and labelling

France’s proposal to harmonise the classification and labelling of metyltetraprole (ISO); 1-[2-({[1-(4-chlorophenyl)-1H-pyrazol-3-yl]oxy}methyl)-3-methylphenyl]-4-methyl-1,4-dihydro-5H-tetrazol-5-one as carcinogen is open for an ad hoc consultation. 

Additional information on carcinogenicity was submitted to ECHA after the consultation on the CLH proposal ended on 10 March 2023.

Have your say on this additional information by 10 July 2023. Our Committee for Risk Assessment will take the new information into account when developing its opinion.

Metyltetraprole is a new active substance for use in plant protection products.

Intentions and proposals to harmonised classification and labelling

Biocides

Joost van Galen appointed as new BPC Chair

Mr van Galen will start in his new position on 1 August 2023. He will chair his first Biocidal Products Committee (BPC) meeting in September 2023. The current chair Erik van de Plassche retires at the end of July.

Mr van Galen has been working in ECHA since 2019 and has a long experience in the biocides area. He was Project leader for authorisations of biocides and plant protection products at the Dutch Board for the Authorisation of Plant Protection Products and Biocides (Ctgb) for almost 10 years.

Commission decisions on Union authorisation

Occupational exposure limits

Calls for comments and evidence

IT Tools

New release of Chesar available 

You can now download the updated version of ECHA's chemical safety assessment and reporting tool Chesar. Chesar 3.8 is fully compatible with the recently published version of IUCLID.

How to use the customisation possibilities in IUCLID?

The OECD has published an updated guide on the customisation opportunities of IUCLID for managing chemical data in different data collection contexts and for different regulations.

Webinars

Towards faster regulatory action: ECHA's approach to assessing chemicals in groups

Join our webinar to learn about our approach to assessments of regulatory needs. We will explain our plans to improve the way registrants are informed about published assessments for their substances and how you can react if your substance is one of those assessed.

We will also tell about the role of assessment of regulatory needs in the context of ECHA’s Integrated Regulatory Strategy as well as processes under REACH and CLP.

Save the date: 3 October 2023, at 11:00 Helsinki time.

Open positions

Scientific Officer – Ecotoxicology

We are looking for a scientific officer with experience in ecotoxicology, environmental fate, and chemical hazard and risk assessment. We are particularly interested in experts with knowledge in assessing persistency, bioaccumulation, and toxicity (PBT/vPvB properties) and persistency, mobility, and toxicity (PMT/vPvM properties) of chemicals.

Apply by 14 August 2023.

Human Resources Assistant

Are you an enthusiastic professional in the field of human resources with customer-oriented mindset, good interpersonal skills and high sense of responsibility and confidentiality?

Check our open vacancy and apply by 2 August 2023.

Board of Appeal 

Appeal against a compliance check decision dismissed

In case A-004-2022, the Board of Appeal held that the Agency has competence to require the use of a specific mode of administration in carrying out the PNDT study and the EOGRTS.

The Agency’s requests were correctly based on the existing studies, the palatability of the substance, and regulatory means.

The Agency did not make an error in setting an adequate time limit for the requested information requirements. The appeal was therefore dismissed.

Court cases

General Court decision T-207/21

In its judgment T207/21, the General Court dismisses an action against the Board of Appeal's decision in case A-015-2019 upholding ECHA’s testing proposal decision requesting an extended one-generation reproductive toxicity study.

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