Global trends in chemical management: expert insight

As chemicals management in both products and processes moves to the forefront of sustainability legislation, companies operating across Europe, Asia Pacific and the US face new challenges to maintain compliance. In this article, Enhesa experts outline the latest chemicals management regulations and what they mean for businesses.  

Chemicals are all around us. They’re present in our cosmetics, our food and its packaging, our clothes, our home products, our work products, our technology, our manufacturing processes, and more. The use of chemicals can’t be eliminated, and not all chemicals are harmful — but for those that are, regulations are required to mitigate the risk to human health and the environment.   

In our recent mid-year forecaster webinar, Enhesa experts Beatriz García Fernández-Viagas, Yangyang Geng, Lauren Payne, and Arnas Acas outlined the latest chemicals management regulations emerging in the EU, Asia Pacific, and US. Read on for a summary of the most prevalent regulatory developments your business needs to be aware of to maintain compliance in this turbulent and ever-changing landscape.

Chemicals management in the EU 

EU Regional Expert Beatriz García Fernández-Viagas outlined how the EU’s zero-pollution ambition includes eliminating the use of chemicals it deems most harmful in industrial operations and consumer products. However, chemicals considered “essential use” are exempt from this. Also in the EU, stricter requirements to control and prohibit the use of certain chemicals are coming to light for 2025.
 

Defining essential use for harmful chemicals

In April 2024, the European Commission published a press release clarifying the concept of essential use for harmful chemicals, as part of the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability. The goal of this definition is to ensure companies understand which chemicals are permitted to be used, and to mitigate or completely prohibit the use of the most harmful substances.  

According to the European Commission, a chemical is considered essential if: 

• “its use is necessary for health or safety or is critical for the functioning of society; and 

• there are no acceptable alternatives.” 

Both of these criteria must be met for the substance to be considered essential for society. However, the concept will only have legal effect when it’s introduced in specific legislation. So far, the EU has not released any legislation containing such a definition.  

While this isn’t in practice currently, as soon as legislation is released with the concept of essential use, companies will be responsible for ensuring their chemical usage is compliant.
 

F-gas regulation list and requirements expansion

The new EU regulation on fluorinated greenhouse gases (F-gas) expands the list of F-gases subject to restrictions and introduces stricter requirements for facilities producing, importing, exporting, or using F-gases, products, or equipment containing them. This could include hydrofluorocarbons, heat pumps, air-conditioning, fire protection, and refrigeration equipment.  

The new F-gas Regulation: 

• Extends leak check obligations — to manufacturers of certain stationary and mobile equipment containing F-gases above certain thresholds, as well as to operators of mobile equipment containing F-gases 

• Extends recovery and destruction requirements — for example, to facilities performing renovation, refurbishing, or demolition works in their buildings. From 2025, they’ll have to ensure that any F-gases contained in insulation foams removed during the works are destroyed or recovered by certified personnel 

• Extends annual reporting obligations — from 2025, facilities producing, importing, exporting, or destroying HFCs will also have to produce annual reports 

• Prohibits the placing on the market of further products and equipment containing F-gases — the regulation will prohibit additional products or equipment containing F-gases from going to market. These include products like certain fire protection equipment and personal care products 

New ODS regulation

The new ODS regulation focuses on ozone depleting substances (ODS) and is an amendment of the previous regulation from 2009. It aims to streamline the licensing system for imports and exports of ODS and any products or equipment containing ODSs.  

Here are the main features of the revised regulation: 

• Simplifies the licensing system — the revised regulation simplifies the current licensing system by requiring importers and exporters to apply for a trader licence in place of a ‘per shipment’ licence, from 2025. This will reduce the administrative burden 

• Stricter trade controls — importers and exporters will have to provide further information to customs authorities, such as data regarding the net mass of ODS imported or exported 

• Further recovery and destruction requirements — effective from 2025, it establishes further requirements by prohibiting facilities from destroying halons in fire protection systems, for example. Additionally, facilities performing renovations in their buildings will need to ensure that any ODS present in insulations foams is destroyed or recovered by certified personnel 

• More stringent annual reporting requirements — the regulation requires any facilities importing, exporting, using, producing, or destroying ODS to include further information in their annual reports, such as information on emissions released during production, storage, or transport 

As we can see, the EU has amplified their chemicals management strategy by implementing even stricter regulations to avoid or reduce the production and selling of harmful substances on the EU market. These stringent rules will undoubtedly have an impact on companies operating in Europe, as they’ll need to adapt their operations and processes to maintain compliance. 

Chemicals management in Asia Pacific 

In Asia Pacific, Japan, Vietnam, and China are accelerating efforts to mitigate the presence of PFAS and other harmful chemicals in their sectors. Regional Expert, Yangyang Geng detailed the latest legislation.
 

Japan

As of 1 February 2024, companies operating in Japan are prohibited from manufacturing and importing perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS), its isomers, and related salts — unless permitted by the competent authority or for research and development purposes. Additionally, companies are subject to export approval if they ship PFHxS, its isomers and salts, and 10 types of products containing these substances. From 1 June 2024, companies are banned from importing 10 types of products containing the aforementioned substances. The affected products could include water and oil repellent fabrics, as well as etching agents used in the manufacture of semiconductors. 

In April 2024, Japan published a proposal to restrict the manufacture, import, and use of PFOA isomers, salts, and related compounds and ban the import of designated products containing these substances. This proposal is expected to be adopted in July 2024, and enforced from September 2024 or January 2025.
 

Vietnam 

In Vietnam, a draft law on chemicals was proposed in March 2024. If adopted, it would impact all companies manufacturing, trading, importing, exporting, storing, or using chemicals and chemical products in the country.  

The draft law would manage four groups of chemicals throughout their life cycle: 

• Banned chemicals (section 1) 

• Hazardous chemicals under special government control (section 2) 

• Conditional chemicals (section 3) 

• Chemicals not listed under the draft law (section 4) 

If adopted, companies would have to provide information on hazardous chemicals in products on the Vietnam National Chemical Database. This law would also subject companies to the country’s first list of hazardous chemicals governed under international conventions, with special operating permits, declaration, and control sheets required.
 

China

China is currently focusing on refining their ODS and HFC regulations to enhance the monitoring of ozone depleting substances and phase down HFCs production.  

New amendments to the Regulation on Management of Ozone Depleting Substances mandate that companies producing, using, or generating ODS are subject to additional registration, disposal, and monitoring requirements from 1 March 2024. Companies using ODS exempted from allowance permits are required to conduct online registration for the first time, and companies generating ODS during production processes must carry out harmless treatment without releasing ODS directly into the environment.  

Further, China proposed a ban on increased production capacity of HFCs used for controlled purposes. This was issued to ban the new establishment and expansion of manufacturing projects of 13 types of HFCs, such as HFC-134 and HFC-143. It aims to freeze the HFCs production in 2024, which is a legal obligation of China under the Kigali Agreement to the Montreal Protocol.  

As evidenced, the APAC region is working to enhance chemical management through frequent updates to chemical regulations and regulatory lists to ensure continued safe use of chemicals, including PFAS, ODS, and HFCs. 

Chemicals management in the US

Senior EHS Regulatory Consultant, Lauren Payne explored how PFAS is at the forefront of chemicals management in the US, but governmental authorities have also been paying close attention to ODSs and HFCs, as with Europe and Asia Pacific regions.
 

Federal- and state-level prohibitions for PFAS

Per- and polyfluorinated substances (PFAS) have remained a trending topic in the chemicals management landscape, so it’s no surprise that the US is cracking down on regulating these harmful substances.  

On a federal level, Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)’s Chemical Data Reporting applies to manufacturing and importing PFAS for commercial purposes from 1 January 2011. This mandates that companies submit information on the type and quantity of PFAS used, and the products it’s in. Applicable to companies operating commercially since 2011, this is a huge administrative task, enforcing more than 13 years’ worth of data into one report. Companies who have only processed, distributed in commerce, used, and/or disposed of PFAS aren’t required to report under this final rule.  

The federal government has been tackling this issue for some years, but we’re now seeing state-level engagement to prohibit these commonly named “forever chemicals”. For instance, Colorado, Virginia, and New Jersey have all adopted stricter discharge restrictions for PFAS. Similarly, California recently published guidance on the limits of PFOA and PFOS discharges in drinking water. Though just guidance, the global concern around these substances suggests these will be adopted in the future. In light of these trends, companies should begin complying before they’re mandated, to stay ahead of the ever-changing standards and mitigate the risk of non-compliance.  

Additionally, Connecticut has recently proposed a bill to ban PFAS in several products from 2026, including cleaning products, fabric treatments, textile furnishings, and upholstered furniture. Further, Maryland is prohibiting PFAS in pesticides.
 

ODS use requirements focusing on HFCs

The trend towards managing the use of ODS has continued in the United States, with a specific focus on HFCs.  

Hawaii and Washington state are implanting restrictions for HFCs in refrigerants and large stationary equipment, aligning with federal Significant New Alternatives Policies (SNAPs), safety standards, and use conditions. Washington also has new labeling requirements for aerosols, mandatory for companies who manufacture, import, or distribute products containing HFCs.
 

The Break Free From Plastics Act

This 2023 act was reintroduced in October 2023 to reduce plastic production, increase recycling initiatives, and shift cleanup burdens to plastic producers. Though still awaiting approval, if this bill is adopted, companies that produce, use, or manufacture certain plastic products would be required to comply with extended producer responsibility targets and cleanup requirements from February 2025.  

Additionally, plastic producers would be required to design covered products, such as packaging and single-use plastic products, to minimize the impacts on the environment and human health. To further manage the oppressive global presence of plastic pollution, this bill would prohibit companies from exporting plastic, pairings, or scraps of plastic from the US to developing countries.  

If adopted, producers would then be banned from selling, offering, or distributing any packaging that contains a toxic substance or prohibited plastic packaging four years later.  

Not only are toxic and harmful chemicals being managed at a federal level, but state-level engagement accelerates the US’ efforts to mitigate the impacts of plastic pollution. The proposal to shift the burden of cleanup to plastic producers would aim to dissuade manufacturers from continuing to work with these durable substances. 

Managing this turbulent landscape

Our experts emphasize how crucial it is for businesses to scrutinize the chemicals in their products, analyze how they impact both human health and the environment, and keep researching safer alternatives in line with new legislation. From these current regulations in Europe, Japan, China, Vietnam, and the United States, we can see that governments across the globe are pushing chemicals management to the forefront of health and safety, and sustainability. 

Senior Team Lead, Arnas Acas, explored how to leverage Compliance Intelligence to see a complete view of regulations across jurisdictions, including the latest changes and updates as they launch; and Regulatory Forecaster to see regulatory changes currently in development. Arcas described how Enhesa solutions help companies gain strategic insight into upcoming and recently launched regulations, filter by industry or topic, and stay ahead of emerging expectations to avoid the risk of non-compliance.  

With Enhesa, companies can be more proactive in the face of a rapidly changing landscape, focus teams’ efforts on impactful and results-oriented strategies, and foster a harmonized view across all jurisdictions to ensure they are maintaining compliance everywhere.