We have entered the final countdown for the publication of a proposal to revise the EU’s main chemicals legislation REACH by the current Europe Commission team. One year ago, Commissioner Šefcovic presented the 2023 Commission work programme to the European Parliament, which stated that the REACH revision would be published in Q4 – which begins this week.
The Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has nominated Commissioner Šefcovic to replace Commissioner Timmermans in charge of the Green Deal (Commissioner Timmermans has left the Commission). The European Parliament’s Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety will have a hearing with Commissioner Šefcovic on 3rd October in order to question him about his nomination to this new role.
The Environment committee has included the REACH revision in its written questions sent in advance to Commissioner Šefcovic, asking ‘can you confirm that the revision of REACH will be proposed without further delay?’
The Commissioner’s answers, published on Friday, do not provide much clarity on the issue. He states that:
“A targeted revision of REACH, announced in the chemical strategy for sustainability and the zero pollution action plan, has the aim of securing European competitive advantages and innovation by promoting sustainable chemicals, simplifying and streamlining the regulatory process, reducing burden and protecting human health and the environment.”
and
“We need to find a balance to reap the opportunities of the European Green Deal in industrial leadership, secure the EU’s competitive advantages and boost innovation by promoting sustainable chemicals, simplifying and streamlining the regulatory process, and protecting human health and the environment, in line with the commitments made in the EU Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability. We are in the process of careful analysis and consultations to make sure that the changes to the legislative framework would help us significantly reduce health hazards and environmental damage from chemical pollution and address the chemicals of very high concern, while ensuring the availability of chemicals that are essential for the key green transition technologies, guaranteeing the level playing field vis-a-vis our international competitors and avoiding too high an administrative burden on European businesses.”
It’s worth noting that the original REACH proposal was published almost exactly 20 years ago, on 29th October 2003. The previous Commission and the current one have commissioned extensive reviews of the effectiveness of REACH, as well as done numerous consultations and a detailed impact assessment as part of the current revision process.
Executive Director of CHEM Trust, Michael Warhurst, said:
The European public expect that EU regulations will protect their health and the health of wildlife from hazardous chemicals. The Commission has plentiful evidence available to it on the deficiencies of the current REACH chemical regulations, and the impacts that improvements to these regulations will create.
It is time for action, not further delay, and Commissioner Šefcovic should commit to publish the REACH revision proposal in Q4 2023, as he said a year ago.”
A wide range of stakeholders have been calling for the publication of the REACH revision, including MEPs on the European Parliament’s Environment Committee, Member States, NGOs at the EU and national level, health organisations and companies.
CHEM Trust and European Environment Bureau highlighted the negative impacts of the ongoing delay to the REACH revision in our report “Waiting for REACH“, published in March 2030.
Update 5th October
MEPs questioned Commissioner Šefcovic at his hearing on 3rd October, but were not happy about his answers on a number of issues, including REACH. They therefore sent him some further questions, with one covering REACH. The Commissioner provided a written response, but his statement on the timeline for REACH reform was vague:
“Preparations will continue on the targeted amendment of the Regulation EC/1907/2006 on the Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals (REACH) to protect human health and the environment and foster competitiveness and innovation for substitution”
Executive Director of CHEM Trust, Michael Warhurst, said:
“It is very disappointing that Commissioner Šefcovic failed to give a clear timeline for publication of the REACH revision proposal. Chemicals policy has been a story of missed deadlines and inadequate action for decades, so this Commission needs to get its act together and publish the proposal”
