Japan has launched a one-month consultation on a proposal to designate PFOA-related substances as Class I Specified Chemical Substances. Comments are accepted until April 2, 2022
In 2021, Japan designated perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and/or its salts as Class I Specified Chemical Substances under its ‘Act on the Evaluation of Chemical Substances and Regulation of their Manufacture, etc.’ (also known as the Chemical Substances Control Law, CSCL). This designation prohibited businesses from importing a wide variety of products containing PFOA and/or its salts from October 2021 (SafeGuardS 79/21).
On March 2, 2022, Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (WHLW), Ministry of Trade, Economy and Industry (METI) and Ministry of the Environment announced a draft measure to designate PFOA-related substances as Class 1 Specified Chemical Substances. The draft measure contains, inter alia, several important provisions:
- Provides a list of PFOA-related substances
- Prohibits the following products containing PFOA-related substances from being imported:
- Floor waxes
- Protective and antifouling agents for textile products
- Water and oil repellents
- Textile products with water and oil repellent properties
- Defoamers (anti-foaming agents)
- Coating agents
- Optical fibers or coating agents applied to optical fibers
- Fire extinguishers, fire extinguishing agents for fire extinguisher and fire extinguishing foam
- Allows limited ‘essential uses’ of PFOA-related substances
According to the announcement, comments for the draft measure will be accepted until April 2, 2022.
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