{"id":117581,"date":"2025-04-23T12:35:12","date_gmt":"2025-04-23T10:35:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eeb.org\/?p=117581"},"modified":"2025-04-23T12:36:50","modified_gmt":"2025-04-23T10:36:50","slug":"too-little-too-late-eu-chemical-reforms-threaten-to-roll-back-public-health-protections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eeb.org\/fr\/too-little-too-late-eu-chemical-reforms-threaten-to-roll-back-public-health-protections\/","title":{"rendered":"Too little, too late: EU chemical reforms threaten to roll back public health protections"},"content":{"rendered":"

The European Commission\u2019s new plan to overhaul the EU\u2019s main chemical regulation, REACH, risks undoing two decades of progress in protecting people and nature from toxic substances.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

On 3 April, the Commission presented<\/span> proposed changes<\/span><\/a> to EU Member State representatives at the <\/span>54th CARACAL meeting<\/span><\/a>, calling them a ‘simplification’ of EU chemicals law. However, the draft reforms would introduce more red tape, delay action on dangerous substances, and closely reflect the demands of the chemical industry lobby. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Dolores Romano, Policy Manager for Chemicals at the European Environmental Bureau (EEB),<\/b> said: \u201c<\/span>The Commission\u2019s proposal is not only long overdue after decades of inaction, but also too little and in the wrong direction. The science on chemical harm has been clear for decades. Instead of finally delivering what was promised in REACH, the Commission is now proposing changes that favour industry convenience over public safety. This is a deeply worrying contradiction.<\/span><\/i>\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The European Commission\u2019s recent endorsement of the <\/span>Antwerp Declaration<\/span><\/a>, a document backed by Europe\u2019s most polluting industries, as a sign that economic interests are being prioritised over the EU\u2019s European Green Deal\u2019s Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe Commission appears willing to trade long-term public health for short-term economic gain and reduced compliance costs for chemical producers,\u201d<\/span><\/i> Romano<\/strong> added.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

One of the clearest signs of regulatory backsliding is the overlap between the Commission\u2019s proposals and the industry\u2019s <\/span>10-point plan to \u201csimplify REACH\u201d<\/span><\/a>. In recent advertising campaigns across Brussels, CEFIC claims to support the European Green Deal. But a close analysis reveals the plan is a thinly veiled deregulation agenda.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Among the key proposals by CEFIC echoed by the Commission:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n