New Zealand to Adopt GHS Rev.7 Classification System on April 30, 2021

GHS Rev.7 will be adopted as New Zealand’s official hazard classification system on April 30th, 2021. The current HSNO hazard classification system will be repealed thereupon. The EPA notices on hazard communication and some of the group standards have been updated to incorporate GHS Rev. 7. An up to 4-year transitional period will be provided for hazardous substances approved before April 30th, 2021.

On November 5th, 2020, New Zealand's Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) issued news titled Chemical management changes coming in 2021 ^[1], which announces that the government has approved the application of the GHS Rev.7 classification system for hazardous substances. The new system will replace the current HSNO classification system and enter into effect on April 30th, 2021.

What are the Changes?

Two rounds of consultation have already been conducted by EPA on the proposal to implement GHS Rev. 7 since October of 2019 (ChemLinked News ^[2]). On October 30th, 2020, EPA announced their approval decision ^[3] on adopting GHS Rev.7 classification system for hazardous system, and two new EPA notices were subsequently issued:

The Hazardous Substances (Hazard Classification) Notice 2020, and
The EPA Notices (Amendments and Revocations) Notice 2020.

The former notice is to establish the hazard classification system for hazardous substances and gases under pressure by reference to GHS Rev.7, which is the basis for future implementation of GHS in New Zealand. The latter notice revokes the Hazardous Substances (Minimum Degrees of Hazard) Notice 2017 and the Hazardous Substances (Classification) Notice 2017. Furthermore, it makes changes to these 2017 notices:

Hazardous Substances (Labelling) Notice 2017
Hazardous Substances (Safety Data Sheets) Notice 2017
Hazardous Substances (Packaging) Notice 2017
Hazardous Substances (Disposal) Notice 2017
Hazardous Substances (Hazardous Property Controls) Notice 2017
Hazardous Substances (Importers and Manufacturers Notice) 2015.

The new and amended notices come into force on April 30th, 2021.
For additional information the EPA notices and details, please refer to: Changes to EPA notices ^[4].

How to Comply?

After the new and amended notices enter into effect next year, how can enterprises ensure that their hazard communication measure are in compliance? EPA provides some answers as written below:

If the enterprise's hazardous substance is approved before April 30th, 2021, the enterprise can continue to use its current labels, safety data sheets and packaging until April 30th, 2025. However, the amended Importers and Manufacturers Notice, Hazardous Property Controls Notice, and Disposal Notice shall be followed when it comes into effect on the 30th of April 2021.
For hazardous substances approved by a group standard there may be a small number of substances covered by a different group standard in comparison to now. This is due to minor differences between the HSNO classification and the GHS Rev. 7. As such, enterprises shall double check whether the group standard they are using is still valid.
If the enterprise's hazardous substance is approved after April 30th, 2021, the enterprise shall comply with all updated rules and use the GHS Rev.7 classifications on SDS.

It shall be noted that a hazardous substance must be covered by an HSNO approval at all times and enterprises must also comply with any workplace regulations made under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.

After adopting the new classification system, some substances may no longer be classified as hazardous after 30 April 2021, for example, a substance that only has a 6.3B classification. For more information, please check this page: What rules apply when ^[5].

Adopting the GHS classification system to replace the HSNO classification system brings New Zealand's chemical management in line with the rest of the world. The changes will undoubtedly benefit multinational enterprises extensively. When they describe the hazards of one substance, they can just use the conclusion that they have obtained for another GHS-adopted country's requirements, rather than reassess the substance under the HSNO system. And for the New Zealand domestic enterprises, while they need to put in the effort to adapt to the new requirements, the globally harmonized system will eventually make it easier to promote their products on a global scale, too.