SG 127.22
Albania has amended its legislation on persistent organic pollutants (POP) to become more consistent with those in the European Union. The latest revision will become effective on December 1, 2022.
In Albania, persistent organic pollutants (POP) are regulated by Decision No. 360 of April 29, 2015 (Decision No. 360/2015), a piece of legislation that was fully aligned with former Regulation (EU) 519/2012, amending Regulation (EC) 850/2004 in the European Union (EU).
In October 2022, Albania issued Decision No. 691 of October, 2022 (Decision No. 691/2022) to revise Decision 360/2015 and partially approximates Regulation (EU) 2019/1021 (POP Recast Regulation, consolidated version to March 2021, SafeGuardS 95/19). The new Decision contains several important changes to Decision No. 360/2015. It:
- Aligns language for definitions and terminologies with those falling under Law No. 27/2016 ‘On the Management of Chemicals’
- Replaces the title in Annex I from ‘List of Prohibited Substances’ to ‘Substances Listed in the Convention and Protocol and Substances Listed Only in the Convention’
- Repositions three substances (hexachlorobutadiene, polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCN) and short chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCP)) from Part B to Part A of Annex I
- Revises certain restriction limits for tetra-, penta-, hexa- and heptabromodiphenyl ethers in Part A to Annex I:
- Adds new entries for the following substances in Part A to Annex I:
- Decabromodiphenyl ether (Deca-BDE)
- Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD) and its main diastereoisomers
- Pentachlorophenol its salts and esters
- Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), its salts and PFOA-related compounds
- Dicofol
Highlights of several changes to Part A of Annex I in Decision No. 691/2022 are summarized in Table 1.
Part A to Annex I of Decision
Substance | Decision No. 691/2022 amending Decision No. 360/2015 | Decision No. 360/2015 |
|---|---|---|
| Tetra-, penta-, hexa-, hepta- and Deca-BDE* | ≤ 10 mg/kg each in substances | ≤ 10 m/kg for each of tetra-, penta-, hexa-, hepta-BDE in substances, mixtures or articles (Deca-BDE not listed) |
| ≤ 500 mg/kg (sum in mixtures or articles) | ||
| Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD) and its main diastereoisomers*: α-HBCDD β-HBCDD γ-HBCDD | ≤ 100 mg/kg in substances, mixtures, articles or flame retarded parts thereof | Not listed |
| Pentachlorophenol, its salts and esters | ≤ 5 mg/kg in substances, mixtures or articles | Not listed |
| Alkanes, C10 – C13, chloro (short-chain chlorinated paraffins, SCCPs)* | < 1% in substances or mixtures | < 1% in substances or mixtures** |
| < 0.15% in articles | Prohibited in articles** | |
| Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), its salts and PFOA-related compounds* | ≤ 0.025 mg/kg PFOA and its salts in substances, mixtures or articles ≤ 1.0 mg/kg each PFOA-related compound and the sum of PFOA-related compounds in substances, mixtures or articles | Not listed |
| Dicofol | No specific exemption on intermediate use or other specifications | Not listed |
| *Contains certain derogations **Listed under Part B to Annex I ‘Substances listed only in the Protocol’ | ||
The provisions in Decision No. 691/2022 will become effective on December 1, 2022
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