EU POPs Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2019/1021 on Persistent Organic Pollutants)
ENFORCEMENT TIMELINE
Effective July 15, 2019 (Regulation (EU) 2019/1021, continuously updated in line with revisions to the Stockholm Convention on POPs)
Overview
This regulation implements the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) within the EU. It strictly bans or restricts the manufacture, placing on the market, and use of POPs substances that are persistent, highly bioaccumulative, and capable of long-range transport, such as PFOS, PFOA, PFHxS, short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs), and decaBDE.
Enforcement Timeline
2004: The original POPs Regulation is enacted.
July 15, 2019: The recast Regulation (EU) 2019/1021 takes effect.
2020 to 2024: Full bans on PFOA and its salts and related substances, and on PFHxS, are progressively applied.
Ongoing: Annex I (the list of banned substances) is updated promptly in response to decisions of the Conference of the Parties to the Stockholm Convention.
Business Impact
Because unintentional trace contaminant (UTS) thresholds in articles are set extremely strictly, in the parts-per-million to parts-per-billion range, content investigation and analytical certification across the entire supply chain are essential.