The revision of the Chemicals Regulation for substances harmful to the environment and health is delayed again.

The EU Commission has postponed the revision of the so-called REACH regulation for substances harmful to the environment and health for another time. Reasons for the renewed postponement were not given. The EU Commission was supposed to present a proposal for updating the regulation by the end of 2022. Now, according to a Commission planning document, the revision of REACH is set for the fourth quarter of 2023. After consultations with key stakeholders, the Commission then intends to propose a targeted revision of the Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals (REACH) legislation, the EU paper says. The goal of the revision was to promote the development of sustainable chemicals, simplify the regulatory process and achieve protection of human health and the environment. The renewed delay has been met with criticism from EU member states: the environment ministers of Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Luxembourg and European Economic Area member Norway had written to the Commission urging that updating REACH was vital to "greening" EU chemicals legislation and implementing the Green Deal. MEPs from various political groups also criticized the EU Commission's decision, saying it was likely to give in to industry protests against further regulation in more difficult economic times.
 

Sources:

• spiegel.de (Oct. 19, 2022)
• Kunststoff Information (Nov. 2, 2022)
• Photo: unsplash.com, Christian Lue