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On March 23, 2022, the Australian Government issued a national roadmap to deliver Australia’s Industrial Chemicals Environmental Management Standard (IChEMS). IChEMS is a national approach to help industries and governments manage the environmental risks of chemicals, which operates in conjunction with the Australia Industrial Chemicals Introduction Scheme (AICIS). The roadmap sets out key steps, roles and responsibilities in the transition to IChEMS.
According to the roadmap, the timeline of delivering IChEMS is as follows:
Early 2022: starting scheduling industrial chemicals;
Mid 2022: releasing plans for IChEMS implementation;
Late 2022: incorporating IChEMS Register into regulatory frameworks;
2023 onward: realizing IChEMS vision and goals.
The Industrial Chemicals Environmental Management (Register) Act 2021 (ICEMR Act), as the legislative framework for the IChEMS to manage the ongoing use, handling and disposal of industrial chemicals in the country, was passed by Australia’s parliament in mid-March 2021 (CL news). Industrial chemicals will be categorized and scheduled on the IChEMS Register based on their environmental risks.
To support the implementation of ICEMR Act, the Australian Government is consulting on the draft Industrial Chemical Environmental Management (Register) Principles (hereinafter referred to as Principles) due by May 24, 2022. The Principles provide basis for the categorization of a chemical into one of the seven schedules (see chart below) and for setting any management standards that apply to a chemical.
The authority also provides supporting materials to facilitate better understanding of the Principles, including:
Australian Environmental Criteria for Persistent, Bioaccumulative and/or Toxic Chemicals
Explanatory paper: Draft Industrial Chemicals Environmental Management (Register) Principles
It should be noted that the introducers of industrial chemicals who import or manufacture chemicals in Australia will be responsible for the scheduling costs. Fees will be determined after industry consultation later in 2022 and the fee collection will coincide with the AICIS annual invoicing period (September 1 - August 31). IChEMS fee collection is currently due to commence from September 1, 2023.
