Anticipating chemical regulations: Proactive strategies for success

Staying ahead of compliance and sustainability is critical for businesses as the lines between the two blur.  

When it comes to chemical regulation, companies should first understand what they are, which ones apply to their business, and how to be in compliance today.  

Companies’ response to the changing landscape largely depends on their ‘readiness’ mindset. By self-identifying where their business sits on the ‘readiness curve’, companies can more easily determine which areas or actions to focus on to respond and proactively stay ahead of changing regulations.  

To self-identify your place on the ‘readiness curve’, consider the following:  

• Is your business primarily focused on regulatory compliance? That is, ensuring your chemicals aren’t restricted, regulated, or above thresholds. 

 If so, you’re in a Compliance stage, similar to many other companies.  

• Is your business also considering chemical watch lists or chemical groups, in addition to specifically listed chemicals? 

If so, you’re in a Compliance+ stage. That is, moving up the curve towards sustainability.  

• Does your business understand the chemicals in your company and supply chain and their impact, and make proactive sourcing and design decisions accordingly? 

If so, you’re taking a Sustainability approach to chemicals management. That is, you’re conducting hazard assessments and understand the inherent characteristics of your chemicals to enable safer and more sustainable chemical choices for sourcing and product design.  

Moving up this curve from simply meeting compliance to proactively addressing sustainability helps keep your business ahead as compliance and sustainability converge. 

1. Disclosure

Disclosure relates to gaining and having information about the chemicals you use, such as varying levels of chemical ingredient data for products and processes.  

Depending on where you’re positioned on the readiness curve, this information could be gathered through compliance statements from suppliers, Full Materials Disclosure (FMD) or Full Formulation Disclosure (FFD), and safety data sheets (SDSs).

2. Assessment

Assessment relates to how well you know the characteristics and impacts of those chemicals, which involves analysis of your chemicals through list screening and Chemical Hazard Assessments (CHAs). Understanding the characteristics of your chemicals is crucial for identifying problematic substances and mitigating future regulatory issues.

Companies may often find themselves at different points on the readiness curve for disclosure versus assessment. As regulatory trends continue to evolve, it’s important for businesses to recognize their current position in terms of these two levers — and where there’s room for progression. 

Leveraging disclosure and assessment 

With the expansion of California’s bisphenol rule, companies can stay ahead by increasing disclosure and conducting deeper assessments.  

• Compliance today: Look across products and processes to identify where bisphenol A may be present in bottles or cups for children, and if so, how to replace or mitigate 

• Responding and anticipating changing rules:  Explore what bisphenols are in your products and where. Assess whether potential replacements are suitable. Conduct more thorough assessments, including Full Materials Disclosure (FMS) and Full Formulation Disclosure (FFD) to understand the chemical groups and potential impacts 

Example #2 — POPs: from Stockholm to Asia-Pacific 

The regulatory situation: In May 2023, United Nations countries agreed to global bans on UV-328 and Dechlorane Plus, under Annex A of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs). These chemicals have a wide range of applications and are used in products such as motor vehicle paints, outdoor furniture, cable coatings, and computer monitors.  

Many countries in the APAC region, including Australia, Malaysia, and China, follow the convention guidelines; however, some are extending their approach to POPs.  

Singapore has expanded restrictions, bringing additional products into scope. This increased scope could provide challenges for customers handling long-chain POPs used in electronics and electrical equipment, food contact materials, paint, cosmetics, motor vehicle products, and more. 

Proactive strategies to stay ahead 

With countries in APAC expanding their definition of POPs, companies could face non-compliance issues if they don’t stay ahead.  

• Compliance focus: Understand if you have UV-328 and Dechlorane Plus and take action to replace or mitigate 

• Anticipate non-compliance: Keep track of the changing adoption of POPs regulation to understand potential regulatory developments, even in jurisdictions where you don’t operate 

• Increase disclosure and assessment: By identifying related substances to POPs now being regulated, companies can choose safer alternatives. To avoid regrettable substitutions, avoid groups with the same hazard characteristics and impacts
  

Example #3 — PFAS 

The regulatory situation: PFAS are one of the most significant moving targets in chemicals management. Due to their widespread use in sectors as varied as medical devices, textiles, plumbing products, and industrial equipment, they impact nearly every industry.  

Each jurisdiction defines PFAS differently, and reporting requirements vary. The EU’s REACH restriction proposal previously considered 4,700 PFAS substances, but now, in line with a new OECD definition, it has expanded to consider a potential 10,000+ PFAS.  

Meanwhile, Health Canada and the US EPA each have their own reporting requirements for 300 and 1,460 PFAS, respectively. 

Staying ahead of expanding PFAS restrictions 

From a compliance perspective, companies can check whether their products contain affected chemicals, but the changing definitions of PFAS and divergence in reporting requirements make that harder.  

Moving towards a Compliance+ and Sustainability approach can help companies navigate this challenge. Using the levers of disclosure and assessment, companies can:  

1. Focus on scope: Adhere to the strictest regulation to mitigate the risk of non-compliance, and prepare for regional changes 
2. Screen for the entire chemical group: Understand where you might have related substances 
3. Conduct broader assessments: look at the characteristics of your chemicals to identify potentially problematic substances and anticipate compliance and sustainability issues