Europe’s plan to restrict thousands of hazardous chemicals has stalled, according to a new study from an environmental group. These delays have led to around 100,000 tonnes of chemicals contaminating food, drinking water and the environment that would otherwise have been avoided. The report blames the European Commission for regulatory inaction and succumbing to industry pressure. Meanwhile, the commission has recently confirmed that it’s no longer planning to revise the Reach chemicals regulation. The 2020 EU Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability had outlined the importance of urgently updating Reach to reflect current science.
Launched in April 2022, the European Commission’s chemical ‘roadmap’ was the most far-reaching programme of chemical controls in the world. It listed 22 chemicals or groups of chemicals with proven carcinogenic, reprotoxic and allergenic effects, and set deadlines to restrict the use of nearly all 22 groups. Designed to accelerate the use of existing laws, the roadmap effectively bans flame retardants, bisphenols, PVC and all PFAS. Estimates at the time suggested that all 22 groups would be restricted and largely off the European market by 2030.
ClientEarth and the European Environmental Bureau have now checked the regulatory status of all 22 files. They benchmarked progress against deadlines in the roadmap and a legal obligation on the commission to act within three months of advice from the European Chemicals Agency (Echa).
They report that, after making rapid early progress, the commission has ‘effectively frozen’ 14 of the 22 files. Of these, it has yet to begin regulating seven and is largely responsible for holding up the finalisation of seven others. Only six restrictions have been adopted into law. The three-month legal deadline has never been met. Delays range from 13 to 47 months, with an average of two years between Echa evaluation and a legislative proposal by the commission. The report estimates that at least 98,355 tonnes of chemical pollution could be attributable to unlawful commission delays from just six of the roadmap files.
The report accuses the commission of prioritising the interests of major polluters, citing the wave of deregulation during President Ursula von der Leyen’s second term. It also notes the commission’s argument that industry stakeholders provide new information at the decision stage for analysis, adding that this is a well-known industry stalling tactic.
‘The commission is rolling back on its own promises, and by doing so, it’s leaving itself exposed to legal challenge,’ says ClientEarth lawyer Hélène Duguy.
The findings underscore the commission’s ‘longstanding administrative negligence’ in the decision-making process regarding the restriction of harmful substances under Reach, says Mirella Miettinen, a chemicals regulation specialist at the law school of the University of East Finland. ‘The report shows that many cases have progressed through opinion-making at the Echa but are now stuck at the decision-making stage. The lack of political will [from] the commission and the member state representatives in the Reach committee is extremely frustrating … but the commission bears overall responsibility.’
She points out that the roadmap was meant to be an interim tool for long-term planning under Reach. ‘Since the commission has now announced that it does not intend to propose a revision of [the] Reach regulation, it appears that the roadmap will continue to serve as an interim tool for some time to come. Given the shortcomings highlighted in this report, it is questionable how effectively it advances the imposition of restrictions or paves the way for the development of less harmful chemicals.’
The commission and the European Chemical Industry Council were approached for comment.
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