An overview of the proposed Chemical Act vs the current Hazardous Substance Act
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Background:
Thailand published the 1st draft of the “Chemical Act” which will replace the currently effective Hazardous Substance Act and its amendments. The draft covers the entire chemical life cycle – from production, import, export, transport, transit, re-import, re-export, having in possession, sales, distribution, use, treatment, and disposal of chemical substances and mixtures, as well as to recycling.
One of the most significant changes is the amendment of the chemical classification system. At present, chemicals are categorized into Type 1-4 Hazardous Substances. According to the Chemical Act in its current version, in future, the Chemical Assessment Committee will classify chemicals present in the “Thailand Chemical Inventory” according to their risks posed to health and environment on a scale from 1 (low risk) to 3 (prohibited). The draft describes the new structure of chemicals management as comprising a top-level national committee responsible for reporting, an assessment committee to classify substances, and a committee of specialists focusing on agriculture, public health, as well as “industrial and other” chemicals.
The main impact for businesses after the implemented of the new Act is for any new chemical which is not listed in the country’s chemical inventory, a new request to evaluate/ assess the new chemicals must be submitted prior to commencing any kind of activity related to such chemical.
Under the current Hazardous Substance Act, only Type 2 and 3 Hazardous Substances are required to be registered. In contrast, every substance will need to be registered under the proposed Chemical Act. The Hazardous Substance Act is being effective until the Chemical Act is approved.
Speaker: Dr Piyatida (Tung) Pukclai, Regional Business Development & Regulatory Policy Director (Asia-Pacific), knoell Thailand