Request a Demo
Key Information:
Name of Regulation: Hazardous Substance Control Act B.E. 2535
Title: New requirement to subject chemicals in the Hazardous Substance Control List (Annex 5.6)
Authority: Thailand Department of Industrial Works (DIW) Ministry Of Industry
Expected time to enforce: April – May 2015
As well known to the public, Thailand Hazardous Substance Control Act (HSCA) B.E. 2535 is considered one of the key regulations in terms of the chemical management in Thailand. Previously, only very selected range of substances/mixtures are under the radar of DIW (See Annex 5 of HSCA). Recently, a new draft announcement titled as “New requirement to subject chemicals in the Hazardous Substance Control List (Annex 5.6)”was passed by the Thailand Hazardous Substance Committee on 25 Sep and is expected to be promulgated in 6 months (estimated around April-May 2015).
The public hearing was held on Sep 19, which was attended by representatives from both companies and the relevant government agencies such as the Ministry of Agriculture, Department of Industrial Works, etc.
According to the announcement, besides the ones in the current lists which were previously controlled by DIW and 5 other authorities in Thailand, manufacturers/ importers of chemicals meeting both of the following requirements will need to submit data to the DIW:
If classified as certain hazards (see Figure 1 below for the 10 hazards concerned)
If manufactured or imported over 1 ton per manufacturer or importer.
The concerned hazards are highly consistent with the definition of hazardous chemicals under HSCA, which are displayed in the diagram below.ChemLinked was told that DIW is setting the criteria for the concerned hazards based on UN GHS and UNTDG, which is expected to be published altogether with the new announcement.
Figure 1. Concerned Hazards of the New Announcement under Thailand HSCA
The following diagram shows that screening procedure for chemicals not listed in the hazardous substance control lists (see 6 Annexes of HSCA). Chemicals need to be notified within 60 days if once the manufactured or imported tonnage exceeds over 1 tonne.
Figure 2. Screening Procedure for Notification under the New Announcement of Thailand HSCA
Information needs to be submitted for notification includes the following:
Company name
VAT ID and Factory ID
Company Address
Type of Chem. (substance or mixture)
Chemical name / Trade name
HS code
UN no. / UN class
Ingredient
Quantity per year (kg.)
Chemical appearance
Container type
Manufacturer name and origin
Supplier name
GHS classification (if any)
Physical Chemical properties
Toxicological properties
Ecological properties
Disposal Consideration
Use Application
SDS
Under the Hazardous Substance Control Act (HSCA) which integrated the concept of “from cradle to grave”, a range of obligations including notification, registration, permit/license, and declaration are prescribed on the chemicals categorized into type 1, 2, 3 and 4. However, before the announcement, only chemicals listed in the hazardous substance control lists are subject to HSCA. Once the announcement goes effective, more chemicals will be included in the regulatory scope of the HSCA. e.g. if a chemical previously not listed is classified by GHS or UNRTDG, it is likely to be subject to the notification with the DIW.
Thailand DIW plans to reinforce its chemical management scheme over hazardous chemicals by including even broader scope of chemicals defined as “hazardous”. It is also expected that by doing so, DIW will establish a more comprehensive list of “existing chemicals” in the future, more likely an existing chemicals database. “Annex 5.6 (the announcement) is the first step that may change chemical management in Thailand. From a negative list to a positive list, risk based (risk assessment) regulation would be introduced after this”, commented by our Thailand partner.
What is also worth mentioning is that this announcement should not apply to a substance/mixture that is already regulated by Hazardous Substance Control Act or other regulations.
