China Publishes Law on the Safety of Hazardous Chemicals

The new law regulates the manufacture, storage, import, distribution, use, transport, and registration of hazardous chemicals. The following covers the specific changes for Chinese manufacturers and importers.

Registration requirement

Although Decree 591 requires the registration of hazardous chemicals without exception, substances manufactured or imported in small quantities, for example those used for research purposes, will be exempt from the registration requirement.

Supervisory authority

The Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) is the central supervisory authority. It keeps an eye on all facilities that use hazardous chemicals. Supervision was previously divided among several authorities, which led to uncertainty regarding responsibilities.

Hazardous chemicals versus dangerous goods

Not every hazardous chemical is automatically considered a dangerous good, but all dangerous goods are usually also hazardous chemicals. The new law provides more clarity here with Articles 64 and 65.

Greater transparency

Companies that manufacture or store hazardous chemicals must conduct a safety assessment every three years. The resulting report must be made publicly available, which goes beyond the previous requirements of Decree 591.

More monitoring

The safety management of hazardous chemicals is to be improved and cover the entire life cycle of the substances. The authorities hope that this approach will enable seamless monitoring of the handling of hazardous chemicals.

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