Japan cabinet approves partial revision of PRTR Act 
On October 15, 2021, the Ministry of the Environment noticed that the Cabinet approved “Cabinet Order for Partial Revision of the Order for Enforcement of the Act on Confirmation, etc. of Release Amounts of Specific Chemical Substances in the Environment and Promotion of Improvements to the Management Thereof (Hereafter “the PRTR Act”)”.
This Cabinet Order revised the substances categorized as Class I Designated Chemical Substances and Class II Designated Chemical Substances prescribed in the PRTR Act in order to promote voluntary improvements in the management of chemical substances by business operators and to prevent impediments to environmental conservation.
Summary of the revision
As a result of a review of the target substances based on the latest knowledge of hazards, there are 649 substances whose hazards meet the current selection criteria, and which meet the new selection criteria for exposure information. While 649 substances were selected under the new criteria, 164 substances were deleted from the list of designated chemical substances, so 251 substances will actually be designated as designated chemical substances. The effective date of this Cabinet Order is April 1, 2023, but with regard to the PRTR system, the amount of release and transfer of the substances subject to the revision will be monitored from FY2023, and notification will be implemented from FY2024.
Review of Class I Designated Chemical Substances subject to the regulations on PRTR and SDS
Currently, 462 substances are designated as Class I, but after the revision, 515 substances will be designated. In addition, the current number of Specific Class I Designated Chemical Substances is 15, but after the revision, 23 substances will be designated.
The 9 substances which will be designated are shown in the table below. Currently, only compounds of lead are categorized as Specific Class I Designated Chemical Substance, and lead itself is categorized as Class I Designated Chemical Substance. Since these two substances will be integrated and the treatment of lead compounds alone as Specific Class I designated chemical substances will be deleted, nine chemical substances are listed for convenience.
| Name of the substances | CAS RN |
|---|---|
| Acetaldehyde | 75-07-0 |
| 3,3′-Dichloro-4,4′-Diaminodiphenylmethane | 101-14-4 |
| 1,2-Dichloropropane | 78-87-5 |
| Trichloroethylene | 79-01-6 |
| Toluidine | 95-53-4, 106-49-0, 108-44-1, 26915-12-8 |
| Pentachlorophenol | 87-86-5 |
| Polychlorinated biphenyls | 1336-36-3 |
| Lead and its compounds | – |
| Bis(tributyltin)=oxide | 56-35-9 |
Review of Class II Designated Chemical Substances subject to the SDS regulations
Currently, 100 substances are designated, but after the revision, 134 substances will be designated.
You can find more information about the PRTR Act from our website.
- Japan’s “PRTR Act”
https://enviliance.com/regions/east-asia/jp/jp-chemical/jp-prtr
The press release of MOE and the related documents can be viewed at the following URLs.
- Press release of MOE
https://www.env.go.jp/press/110089.html - Summary of the revision (Japanese)
https://www.env.go.jp/press/files/jp/116939.pdf
