50
3 The Role of Legislation
chemical industry has also responded with its own improvement plan (Cefic,
2019).
• Although REACH registration requires the generation of safety data, significant
knowledge gaps still exist regarding many of the potential effects that mixtures
of chemicals could have on human health and the environment (Kortenkamp and
Faust, 2018). Various proposals have been put forward on how to better manage
the risks posed by chemical mixtures (Bergman et al., 2019; More et al., 2019;
Zilliacus et al., 2019), but no approach has been agreed upon. This aspect will be
further discussed in Chap. 6.
• The transparency of the data and processes used in assessing the safety of
chemicals within REACH has been scrutinized (Ingre-Khans et al., 2016).
Consumers globally have also been concerned with the public availability of
safety data on emissions of chemicals into the environment (Client Earth, 2016)
and on ingredients used in products (BizNGO, 2019).
• There is a significant ongoing debate regarding the efficiency of the current
approach to reviewing the safety of chemicals one at a time. Stakeholders have
called instead for the swifter assessment (and regulation) of entire groups of
chemicals with similar structures or properties (Cousins et al., 2020; Schneider,
2019).
• There is a call to carefully consider whether or not the use of all chemicals on the
market is essential or if instead safer chemical or even nonchemical alternatives
can be used to solve current challenges or meet existing needs (Cousins et al.,
2019).
• An unprecedented number of research studies and stakeholder initiatives are
being carried out on chemicals. All of these data have become scattered across
hundreds of different journals and databases (and in many different languages),
making it difficult to find and bring all of the relevant information into the
legislative decision-making process. Recent calls have been made to better
coordinate and engage stakeholders to improve the organization and transfer of
these data from scientists to policymakers, as well as to better communicate the
policymakers’ knowledge gaps back to the scientists (Wang et al., 2019).
• With a rapidly globalizing economy, it is more important than ever to integrate
life cycle thinking into chemical legislation. This involves considering the
impacts across the entire lifespan of chemical products and processes, from raw
material extraction to production and use and through end-of-life treatment. This
will be further introduced and discussed in Chap. 5.
• In developing legislation, regulations, and/or agreements, it is important to
consider the very different conditions that can exist in different regions. This
can be in respect to, for example, climate conditions, existing infrastructure,
financial resources, expertise, and safety culture. For example, the specialized
safety equipment that might be used (and needed) when applying a hazardous
agricultural chemical in a wealthy country may simply not be available (or
affordable) to farmers in a developing country.
3 The Role of Legislation
chemical industry has also responded with its own improvement plan (Cefic,
2019).
• Although REACH registration requires the generation of safety data, significant
knowledge gaps still exist regarding many of the potential effects that mixtures
of chemicals could have on human health and the environment (Kortenkamp and
Faust, 2018). Various proposals have been put forward on how to better manage
the risks posed by chemical mixtures (Bergman et al., 2019; More et al., 2019;
Zilliacus et al., 2019), but no approach has been agreed upon. This aspect will be
further discussed in Chap. 6.
• The transparency of the data and processes used in assessing the safety of
chemicals within REACH has been scrutinized (Ingre-Khans et al., 2016).
Consumers globally have also been concerned with the public availability of
safety data on emissions of chemicals into the environment (Client Earth, 2016)
and on ingredients used in products (BizNGO, 2019).
• There is a significant ongoing debate regarding the efficiency of the current
approach to reviewing the safety of chemicals one at a time. Stakeholders have
called instead for the swifter assessment (and regulation) of entire groups of
chemicals with similar structures or properties (Cousins et al., 2020; Schneider,
2019).
• There is a call to carefully consider whether or not the use of all chemicals on the
market is essential or if instead safer chemical or even nonchemical alternatives
can be used to solve current challenges or meet existing needs (Cousins et al.,
2019).
• An unprecedented number of research studies and stakeholder initiatives are
being carried out on chemicals. All of these data have become scattered across
hundreds of different journals and databases (and in many different languages),
making it difficult to find and bring all of the relevant information into the
legislative decision-making process. Recent calls have been made to better
coordinate and engage stakeholders to improve the organization and transfer of
these data from scientists to policymakers, as well as to better communicate the
policymakers’ knowledge gaps back to the scientists (Wang et al., 2019).
• With a rapidly globalizing economy, it is more important than ever to integrate
life cycle thinking into chemical legislation. This involves considering the
impacts across the entire lifespan of chemical products and processes, from raw
material extraction to production and use and through end-of-life treatment. This
will be further introduced and discussed in Chap. 5.
• In developing legislation, regulations, and/or agreements, it is important to
consider the very different conditions that can exist in different regions. This
can be in respect to, for example, climate conditions, existing infrastructure,
financial resources, expertise, and safety culture. For example, the specialized
safety equipment that might be used (and needed) when applying a hazardous
agricultural chemical in a wealthy country may simply not be available (or
affordable) to farmers in a developing country.