|
|
|
|
|
Newsletter | February 2016, Issue 1
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
ENVIRONMENT
|
|
|
|
Chemical Laws in Korea – A Year in Review & Outlook
|
|
|
|
Korea is marking the first anniversary of the two primary chemical laws in the country – Act on the Registration, Evaluation, etc. of Chemicals (“K-REACH”), and the Chemicals Control Act (“CCA”).
|
|
|
|
2015:
|
|
|
|
Both took effect on January 1, 2015, amidst growing concerns by the companies over increasingly stringent chemical regulations.
|
|
|
|
In enforcing K-REACH and the CCA, the Ministry of Environment (“MOE”) focused on the following:
|
|
|
|
|
Strengthening relevant organizations/personnel, and building up infrastructure, such as the REACH IT system; and
|
|
|
Explaining the new chemical regulatory scheme to companies.
|
|
|
|
|
2016:
|
|
|
|
This year, the MOE is expected to further strengthen K-REACH/CCA enforcement by initiating various surveys and investigations, among other measures. They will do so to ensure that the intended goals of these chemical laws are being fulfilled.
|
|
|
|
Key issues & helpful tips:
|
|
|
|
We advise companies to review the following issues in advance to ensure that they are compliant with K-REACH and the CCA.
|
|
|
|
1. Submission of written confirmations for chemical substances
|
|
|
|
|
|
Prior to manufacture or import, a manufacturer/importer must first confirm whether its chemical substance or chemical component of a chemical product falls under any of the regulated chemical substances in Korea28 through a written confirmation (“WC”) submitted to the Minister of Environment.
|
|
|
|
|
|
The manufacturer/importer must submit the WC once prior to the first manufacture/import of the chemical substance.
|
|
|
WCs are not needed for subsequent manufacture/import of the same chemical substance.
|
|
|
However, if the content/composition of the product containing the chemical substance (for which the WC was submitted) is later changed, the manufacturer/importer must submit a new WC for the newly formulated product.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Since the MOE announced the list of 510 phase-in chemical substances subject to registration (“PSSRs”) on June 30, 2015, PSSRs have been included as regulated chemical substances subject to written confirmation.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Thus, beginning July 1, 2015, through WCs to the MOE, manufacturers/importers should have indicated whether their chemical substances/component chemicals of chemical products include PSSRs.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
For manufacturers/importers who already submitted WCs for products containing PSSRs prior to the above PSSR announcement, the MOE clarified that new WCs would need to be submitted, and granted a 6-month grace period through December 31, 2015.
|
|
|
|
|
2. Registration of non-phase-in chemical substances
|
|
|
|
|
|
Manufacturers/importers of non-phase-in chemical substances must register them under K-REACH.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Compared to the registration requirements under the Toxic Chemicals Control Act (“TCCA”), the former chemical regulations regime prior to K-REACH/CCA focused on toxicity. K-REACH has expanded the scope of the assessment to include both toxicity and environmental risks of a non-phase-in chemical substance. Accordingly, registration under K-REACH requires expanded type and scope of information materials.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Further, as sanctions against violations of the registration requirement have been strengthened, manufacturers/ importers of chemical products must first confirm whether any of their products contain non-phase-in chemical substances, and comply with the registration requirement prior to manufacturing or importing such products.
|
|
|
|
Also, upon consultation with the Ministry of Justice (“MOJ”) in 2015, the MOE carried out a 6-month leniency program29 to provide companies with the opportunity to remedy past violations of the TCCA30.
|
|
|
|
|
|
We have been informed that there were approximately over 500 leniency applications submitted to the MOE during the leniency period.
|
|
|
As the MOE is likely to investigate companies that did not file for leniency during the program, we recommend conducting a thorough inspection to determine whether there have been any past TCCA violations, and to develop a plan to minimize legal risks resulting from any such violations.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
3. Registration of PSSRs
|
|
|
|
|
|
With the announcement of the 510 PSSRs on June 30, 2015,31 the 3-year grace period for the registration of those PSSRs went into effect.
|
|
|
|
|
|
As such, companies that manufacture or import the announced PSSRs at an annual volume of at least 1 ton must register them no later than June 30, 2018.
|
|
|
Companies that fail to register the PSSRs by this deadline will be banned from further manufacture/import of the relevant PSSR.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
In principle, companies that are required to register PSSRs should jointly submit certain registration data/information. Accordingly, companies need to establish and develop a strategy regarding:
|
|
| 1) |
Scope of data/information to be jointly submitted;
|
| 2) |
Whether to produce such data/information or purchase pre-existing materials from data-owners; and
|
| 3) |
Allocate necessary budget for data collection and joint submission activities.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
4. Permit to operate a hazardous chemical substance business
|
|
|
|
|
|
Business registrations regarding toxic chemical substances under the former TCCA has been replaced by permits to operate hazardous chemical substance business under the CCA.
|
|
|
|
Related to this change, the government agency in charge of the issuance of relevant business permits has also been changed from the relevant municipal office (i.e., city, county, district, etc.) to the competent regional environmental office.
|
|
|
Thus, it would be prudent for companies handling hazardous chemical substances to confirm whether they have:
|
|
|
| 1) |
Obtained the requisite permit to operate hazardous chemical substance business from the competent regional environmental office; and
|
| 2) |
If the company’s place of business has recently changed, confirm whether you applied for a change to the relevant business permit.
|
|
|
|
|
In addition, companies that previously applied for business registrations regarding toxic chemical substances under the TCCA must submit an “Off-site Consequence Analysis” to the competent regional environmental office to be deemed fully compliant with the CCA.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 28 |
|
E.g., a prohibited substance, a restricted substance, a toxic substance or a non-phase-in substance).
|
|
| 29 |
|
From May 22, 2015 to November 21, 2015.
|
|
| 30 |
|
Caused by the manufacture/import of non-phase-in chemical substances without the requisite toxicity examinations.
|
|
| 31 |
|
Please see “I. Submission of written confirmations for chemical substances” in this article.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Back to Main Page
|
|
|
|
|
|
If you have any questions regarding this article, please contact below:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
For more information, please visit our website:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|