SGS : Australia Consults Over Listing of Two POP Chemicals

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Australia has initiated a four-week consultation over its proposed listing of two POP chemicals to the IChEMS Register. These are planned to become effective on July 1, 2026.

On April 15, 2024, Australia's Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) announced its proposed scheduling of Dechlorane Plus® and UV-328 to Schedule 6 under the Industrial Chemicals Environmental Management (Register) Instrument 2022 (IChEMS Register).

The IChEMS Register is a register where chemicals are assigned to one of seven schedules based on their risk characteristics, as set out in the IChEMS Principles.

Schedule 6 chemicals are those with essential uses that are likely to cause serious or irreparable harm to the environment. Dechlorane Plus®, UV-328 and products containing these chemicals will be prohibited from manufacture, import, use and export, with derogations for unintentional trace contamination (UTC), time limited essential uses and disposal, and for articles (products) in use prior to the effective date of the decision.

Highlights of the risk management measures in the proposed scheduling of Dechlorane Plus® and UV-328 and their uses are summarized in Tables 1 and 2, respectively.

Table 1. Risk management measures for Dechlorane Plus® and UV-328

Substance	Scope	Requirement	Proposed effective date
Dechlorane Plus® (DP, CAS 13560-89-9) and its two isomers: • syn-DP (CAS 135821-03-3) • anti-DP (CAS 135821-74-8)	Substance	Prohibited	July 1, 2026¹
Dechlorane Plus® (DP, CAS 13560-89-9) and its two isomers: • syn-DP (CAS 135821-03-3) • anti-DP (CAS 135821-74-8)	Substance: • on its own • in mixtures • in articles	Prohibited, except its presence as a UTC is at a level that cannot be meaningfully used	July 1, 2026²
UV-328 (CAS 25973-55-1)	Substance	Prohibited	July 1, 2026¹
UV-328 (CAS 25973-55-1)	Substance: • on its own • in mixtures • in articles	Prohibited, except its presence as a UTC is at a level that cannot be meaningfully used	July 1, 2026²

¹ Manufacture
² Import, export and use

Table 2. Uses of Dechlorane Plus® and UV-328

Substance	Application
Dechlorane Plus® (a polychlorinated flame retardant)	• Adhesives, sealants and polymers (plastics) • Electrical and electronic equipment including consumer electronics • Fabrics, textiles, apparels and plastic articles • Insulation coating for cables and wires in the automotive industry • Monitoring instruments • Polymers and plastic mouldings
UV-328 (an ultra-violet (UV) radiation absorber)	• Chemical products such as automotive fluids and lubricants, fragrances, inks, lacquers, thinners and varnishes • Fabrics and textiles • Industrial sealants in aftermarket automotive products • Liquid crystal displays (LCD) in electronic equipment and devices • Photographic paper • Printing inks and adhesives in food contact materials • Surface coatings, paints and plastics

Information on essential uses of these two chemicals in Australia can be found in the proposed scheduling.

The DCCEEW announcement also consults over three chemicals that present a lower risk to the environment:

• Melamine and boric acid and its precursors are proposed to be listed under Schedule 2 of the IChEMS Register, a category for chemicals that are unlikely to cause harm to the environment
• β-alanine is intended to be added to Schedule 3 of the IChEMS Register, a category for chemicals that have the potential to cause harm to the environment

These three lower concern chemicals are required to comply with the IChEMS Minimum Standards, a set of standards agreed by commonwealth, state and territory environmental regulators as published by the department and as existing from time to time.

Comments for all five chemicals will be accepted until May 13, 2024.

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