SG 131/23
Australia has initiated a one-month consultation on its proposal to ban several POP chemicals. If approved, these will be implemented in phases from July 2024
In September 2023, Australia’s Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) announced a proposed scheduling of four brominated flame retardants (BFR) under the nation’s Industrial Chemicals Environment Management Scheme (IChEMS).
The intended four BFR are listed under the Stockholm Convention on persistent organic pollutants (POP):
- Tetrabromodiphenyl ether (tetraBDE) and pentabromodiphenyl ether (pentaBDE) – also known as Commercial pentaBDE.
- Hexabromodiphenyl ether (hexaBDE), heptabromodiphenyl ether (heptaBDE) and octabromodiphenyl ether (octaBDE) – also known as Commercial octaBDE.
- Nonabromodiphenyl ether (nonaBDE) and decabromodiphenyl ether (decaBDE) – also known as Commercial decaBDE.
- Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD).
If accepted, the proposals will prohibit their import, manufacture, use and export, with exceptions for unintentional trace contamination (UTC), research, environmentally sound disposal, and for articles in use prior to the effective date of the decisions.
Tetra-, penta-, hexa-, hepta- and octaBDE and HBCDD will be assigned to Schedule 7 of the IChEMS Register ‘Industrial chemicals that are likely to cause serious or irreversible harm to the environment with no essential uses.
Nona- and decaBDE will be assigned to Schedule 6 of the IChEMS Register ‘‘Industrial chemicals that are likely to cause serious or irreversible harm to the environment with essential uses.’ These time-limited essential uses include but are not limited to:
- Electrical and electronic equipment, polyurethane foam for building insulation and textile products (other than clothing and toys) that require anti-flammable characteristics (all until January 1, 2027)
- Spare parts for motor-vehicles that were manufactured before 2019 (until January 1, 2036)
Highlights of the proposed scheduling of these BFR when present as UTC are summarized in Table 1.
| Substance1 | Scope | Requirement for presence as UTC | Proposed effective date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tetra-, penta-, hexa-, hepta and octaBDE | Substances:
| ≤ 10 mg/kg for each of tetra-, penta-, hexa-, hepta- and octaBDE | July 1, 20242 |
| Articles | ≤ 500 mg/kg for sum of tetra-, penta-, hexa-, hepta-, octa-, nona- and decaBDE | July 1, 20242 | |
| HBCDD, including α-, β- and γ-HBCDD | Substances:
| ≤ 100 mg/kg | July 1, 20242 |
| Articles | ≤ 100 mg/kg | July 1, 20242 | |
| Nona- and decaBDE | Substances:
| ≤ 10 mg/kg for each of nona- and decaBDE | July 1, 20252 |
| Articles | ≤ 500 mg/kg for sum of tetra, penta-, hexa-, hepta-, octa-, nona- and decaBDE | July 1, 20252 |
1 All congeners for tetra-, penta-, hexa-, hepta-, octa- and nonaBDE
2 Import, manufacture, use and export
Table 1
Comments will be accepted until October 25, 2023
According to World Trade Organization document number 23-6451, the draft decisions are proposed to be adopted by December 31, 2023
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