Reforming the European Chemicals Agency: Strengthening Safety, Transparency, and Cooperation

What the Changes Do

The European Parliament has updated the rules for the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). These changes allow the Agency to improve its operations, increase its transparency, and work more closely with other EU bodies and the public.

The amendments cover many aspects of the Agency, including its mission, structure, funding, and how it cooperates with other EU agencies. Overall, the goal is to strengthen the EU’s chemicals policy to make it safer for people, animals, the environment, and the economy.

Expanded Mission and Focus

The Agency’s responsibilities are broader than before. It is now required to:

• Safety Scope: Protect human health, the environment, and vulnerable groups (such as children and pregnant women) from chemical hazards.
• Sustainability: Include environmental sustainability in its focus on chemicals, mixtures, and articles.
• Market Support: Support the safe circulation of chemicals across the EU market.
• Innovation: Promote non-animal testing methods and help research into safer alternatives.
• Business Support: Assist small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with compliance costs and rules.
• Health Research: Support research and innovation, including studying all exposures that affect health (known as “exposomics”).

Organizational Improvements

The structure of the Agency is being updated to improve governance and input from various groups:

• Management Board: The Board must now include a balanced mix of experts and must follow stricter rules regarding conflicts of interest.
• Stakeholder Input: A new Assembly of accredited stakeholders has been created. This body brings together industry, NGOs, and scientists to provide input and hold the Agency accountable.
• Cross-Sectoral Work: A permanent Task Force will coordinate efforts across multiple EU agencies (including EFSA, EMA, and ECDC) to manage "One Health" issues (covering human, animal, plant, and environmental health) and exposome research.
• Committees: The existing committees will continue to operate, but their members must be chosen for their expertise, gender balance, and independence.

Transparency and Accountability

The amendments introduce stricter rules regarding public access and financial oversight:

• Public Records: The Agency must post all requests for scientific opinions, their status, and the final opinions on its website.
• Expert List: It must maintain a public list detailing its experts, their qualifications, and any conflicts of interest.
• Annual Reporting: The Agency must publish an annual report detailing:
• How it spent its money.
• How it handled requests and opinions.
• Any attempts to influence its work.
• The status of its reserve fund.
• Financial Stability: The Agency can create a reserve fund from surplus fees. This fund is designed to keep the Agency financially stable and smooth out large changes in revenue.

Independence and Cooperation

• Staff Independence: Staff and experts must remain free from conflicts of interest and cannot take instructions from any government or private body.
• Disagreement Protocol: If the Agency and another body disagree on a scientific issue, they must produce a joint, public report explaining the disagreement and the reasons for the different views.
• Inter-Agency Cooperation: The Agency will work closely with other EU bodies, such as the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA), through the permanent task force.

Summary of Key Changes

In short, the amendments make the European Chemicals Agency:

• Broader in scope: Covering environmental sustainability and vulnerable groups.
• More transparent: Making all requests, opinions, and financial data publicly available.
• Better organized: Establishing a stakeholder assembly and a permanent task force for cross-sectoral work.
• More independent: Implementing strict rules for staff and experts to prevent conflicts of interest.
• More collaborative: Establishing clear processes for working with and resolving disagreements with other EU agencies.

Broader Context

This legislation amends REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals), the EU's main law since 2007 for managing chemical risks. It builds on updates like the 2023 REACH revision for safer chemicals and less animal testing. The changes respond to calls from EU Green Deal and Zero Pollution Action Plan to protect health, cut pollution, and boost green innovation. Adopted on 29 April 2026 by the European Parliament in Strasbourg, it strengthens ECHA amid rising concerns over PFAS ("forever chemicals"), endocrine disruptors, and exposome effects (total lifetime exposures).

Impact on People Living in the EU

• Safer everyday products: Chemicals in toys, cosmetics, food packaging, and clothes face stricter checks, reducing risks for children and pregnant women.
• Healthier environment: Focus on sustainability and One Health limits pollution in air, water, and soil, cutting links to cancer, allergies, and hormone issues.
• Business support for locals: SMEs get help with rules, keeping jobs in chemical-related industries while promoting safer alternatives.
• More trust: Transparency lets anyone check ECHA decisions online, holding the agency accountable.

Impact on Businesses in the EU

Industry must register more data on sustainability and alternatives, but fee reviews and reserve fund stabilize costs. SMEs gain targeted aid, easing compliance. Promotes innovation in green chemicals, aiding EU market competitiveness.

Global Reach

EU chemical rules apply to imports via REACH enforcement. Non-EU exporters (e.g., from Asia or US) face same standards for EU sales, pushing worldwide safer practices without direct control outside EU.