ClientEarth shows that the Commission takes an unreasonable time to adopt chemical decisions

The Commission is in charge of adopting the final decision on whether to authorise the use of substances of very high concern, or whether to restrict the use of substances with unacceptable risks. It has to do so on the basis of the scientific opinions provided by the European Chemical Agency’s committees, and with the support of experts from the Member States.

ClientEarth has done a systematic review of the time it has taken the Commission to adopt this decisions since the beginning of REACH. It uncovered that the decisions have suffered from unreasonable delays, which resulted in the continuous use of some substances known to be harmful.