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Chinese Mainland
China MoT Clarifies Requirements for Transport of Medical MRI Machines and Limited Bottled Freon-type Refrigerant Gases (July 6, 2021)
On June 29, 2021, the Ministry of Transport of the People's Republic of China(MoT) issued a Notice on Further Regulation of Road Transportation Management of Medical MRI Machines and Limited Bottled Freon-type Refrigerant Gases (MoT Order 42 of [2021]). According to the Notice, liquid helium (UN 1963) in medical MRI machines and Freon-type refrigerant gases (UN1018, UN3159, UN3337, UN3340 and UN1078) can be exempt from TDG requirements such as qualification of transport enterprises and practitioners, special vehicles requirements etc. and shall be managed as general cargo in road transportation when their packagings and transport quantities meet relevant conditions. (CL news)
China to Implement New Hazchem Registration Online System (July 12, 2021)
The Guangdong province has led the country in implementing the new Hazchem registration online system. The new version of the system requires more data. Each registered product will be assigned a QR code to facilitate users to access all relevant registration information and download the corresponding SDS and label of the product. (CL news)
China National Standards for Recycled Plastics to Be Implemented on 1 Dec 2021 (July 13, 2021)
On May 21, 2021, China released three national standards for recycled plastics, including GB/T 40006.1-2021 Plastics-Recycled Plastics-Part 1: General Rules, GB/T 40006.2-2021 Plastics-Recycled Plastics-Part 2: Polyethylene (PE) Materials and GB/T 40006.3-2021 Plastics- Recycled Plastics-Part 3: Polypropylene (PP) Materials. They will take effect on December 1, 2021. Another five standards for ABS, PS and PS-I, PC, PA and PET materials will be issued soon. (CL news)
China MEE Consults on National Work Plan for the Assessment of Standardized Environmental Management of Hazardous Waste (July 16, 2021)
On July 7, 2021, the Chinese Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) issued a notice consulting on the “14th Five-Year Plan” (2021-2025) for National Work Plan for the Assessment of Standardized Environmental Management of Hazardous Waste. The consultation ended on July 19. Based on the “13th Five-Year Plan” (2016-2020) for National Work Plan for the Supervision and Assessment of Standardized Environmental Management of Hazardous Waste and Index System of Standardized Management of Hazardous Waste, the Plan has been modified and improved, with the evaluation index being updated. (CL news)
China Issues Data on Occupational Diseases in 2020 (July 19, 2021)
On July 13, 2021, the National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China (NHC) released the Statistical Report on China's Health Care Development in 2020. A total number of 17,064 cases of occupational diseases nationwide were reported and over 84% of the cases were pneumoconiosis and other respiratory diseases. According to the Report, pneumoconiosis continues to be the most important occupational disease in the country. 2020 saw 6,668 death due to pneumoconiosis, which mainly occurs in coal, metallurgy, building industries, etc. (CL news)
China MIIT Consults on over 300 National and Industry Standards (July 20th, 2021)
On July 20th, 2021, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the People's Republic of China issued a Notice consulting on over 300 national and industry standards. The relevant standardization technical organization has completed the compilation or revision of 290 industry standards and 6 national standards. In addition, 10 industry standards were translated into English. These standards are publicized before release for public comments, and the deadline is August 20th, 2021. (CL news)
China Approves 28 New Varieties of Food Additives and Food-related Products (July 26, 2021)
9 new varieties of food additives and 19 new food-related products were approved by China’s National Health Commission (NHC) on July 26, 2021. The 19 new food-related products include 3 food contact materials (FCM) additives, 9 FCM additives with extended application scope, and 7 resins for FCM. (CL news)
China Nantong City Issues the First Environmental Protection Fine on Source Control of VOCs (July 28, 2021)
In July 2021, a home design enterprise was found illegally using solvent-based paints with high VOCs emissions by the enforcement officers from the Tongzhou Ecological Environment Bureau of Nantong City, Jiangsu Province, violating the environmental assessment approval requirements that the waster-based coatings and low-VOCs (VOCs-free) adhesives shall be used. This case is the first time that the source control of VOCs has been investigated and dealt with, filling the gap in law enforcement for source control. A comprehensive replacement system of clean raw materials including low-VOC coatings, inks, adhesives, etc. will be established in the city. (CL news)
China MEE to Incorporate HFCs Reduction Plan into National Program (July 29, 2021)
On July 26, 2021, Liu Youbin, spokesperson for the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, said that China will incorporate the HFCs reduction plan into the National Program for Phasing Out Ozone-depleting Substances (ODS) and establish and implement an import and export licensing system for HFCs. In addition, China is embarking on the implementation of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. It will take effect in China on September 15, 2021, aiming for the phase-out of HFCs by cutting their production and consumption. And China will take arduous efforts to smooth its implementation. (CL news)
Taiwan, China
TCSB Official Addresses Industry Concerns over Draft Amendments of Taiwan REACH (July 21, 2021)
Taiwan authority officially clarified many issues and answered questions raised by the industry regarding the draft amendments of Taiwan’s New and Existing Chemical Registration Regulation in a seminar, especially issues relating to the extended registration deadline, review period, exemptions, registration validity, etc. (CL news)
South Korea
Korea MoE Issues Amendments to Stipulated Quantities for Toxic, Restricted, Prohibited and Authorized Substances (July 5, 2021)
The Regulation is formulated to facilitate the submission of chemical accident prevention management plan for handling hazardous chemical substances under the Chemical Control Act (CCA). The amendments include adding 48 toxic substances (Given No.2021-1-1009~2021-1-1056) with upper and lower handling limits and updating the details of three previously designated toxic substances. (CL news)
Korea MoE Issues Amendments to Stipulated Quantities for Toxic, Restricted, Prohibited and Authorized Substances (July 5th, 2021)
On July 5th, 2021, South Korea’s Ministry of Environment (MoE) announced the updates to the Regulations on the Stipulated Quantities for Toxic Substances, Restricted Substances, Prohibited Substances and Substances Subject to Authorization by MoE Announcement No.2021-134, which came into effect immediately. The updates include: Updating the details of three toxic chemical substances (Given No. 97-1-9, 97-1-423, and 2017-1-762) that were previously designated; Adding 48 substances (Given No.2021-1-1009~2021-1-1056) with upper and lower handling limits, which were designated as toxic chemical substances after hazard evaluation under K-REACH in February and June this year (ChemLinked news). (CL news)
South Korea Releases New Packaging Material Requirements (July 9, 2021)
On July 9, 2021, the MoE issued the Guideline on Recycling Symbols and Standards of Labeling Quality, which will take effect on January 1, 2022. The Structure of Packaging Material Grade was issued in March and took effect immediately. (CL news)
South Korea Updates GHS Classification List (July 12, 2021)
On July 12, 2021, the NIER announced the updates to the GHS Classification List by NIER Announcement No. 2021-40, which came into effect immediately. The updates include adding 19 chemical substances (Given No. 2021-1-1038 ~ 2021-1-1056) with corresponding classification information, pictograms, signal words, hazard statements, M factors and UN No and updating the name or classification information of 38 toxic chemicals, 5 types of restricted chemicals and 5 accident precaution chemicals that were previously designated. (CL news)
17,151 Substances Pre-registered under Korea REACH (Jul 30, 2021)
On July 15, 2021, South Korea's Ministry of Environment (MoE) published the updated list of pre-registered substances under K-REACH. So far, a total of 193,224 pre-registration applications have been submitted for 17,151 existing chemical substances, of which 78 are CMR substances. About 11% of the pre-registered substances are manufactured or imported over 1,000 tonnes per year. (CL news)
Japan
Japan MHLW Adds 192 Existing Chemical Substances under ISHL (July 8, 2021)
On June 25, 2021, the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) published on the official gazette 192 chemical substances as existing chemical substances under the Industrial Safety and Health Law (ISHL). The substances were assigned with ISHL numbers from 29244 to 29435. The additions are effective immediately. (CL news)
Japan to Expand Scope of Mandatory SDS and Labelling Obligations (July 19, 2021)
The MHLW will add 1,800 hazardous chemicals subject to mandatory GHS-related obligations under its Industrial Health and Safety Law (ISHL) in the following three years. More specifically, a timetable is proposed for adding additional 250 substances in 2021, 700 substances in 2022 and 850 substances in 2023 respectively. (CL news)
Japan MHLW to Adopt Autonomous Risk Management for Chemicals in Workplaces (July 19, 2021)
The MHLW’s focus on chemical management will shift to businesses’ autonomous risk management. In the future, the MHLW will establish some standards as benchmarks for chemical management, e.g., exposure limits for substances, and improve the current hazard communication system. Enterprises will conduct risk assessments based on such information and autonomously adopt control measures to prevent risks. (CL news)
Vietnam
Vietnam Consults on the Amendment of Decree No.133/2017/ND-CP under the Law on Chemicals (July 9, 2021)
On July 9th, 2021, the Vietnam Chemical Agency under the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) issued a notice to collect opinions on the amendment and supplement of articles of Decree No.133/2017/ND-CP: Detailed regulations and guidance on the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Chemicals. The public can submit their comments on the draft amendment on the website, where the draft, amendment introduction, and amendment background documents (in Vietnamese) can be downloaded. The amendment focuses on the declaration of imported chemicals, chemical accident response, and industrial chemicals management, etc. (CL News)
