In addition to the national regulations explained in more detail below, all North American countries have also signed various international agreements which result in further bans and restrictions on the import of hazardous chemicals.

USA – Safety data sheets according to 29 CFR 1910.1200

The 29 CFR 1910.1200 is the core standard for the creation of safety data sheets for the US legal area. The GHS implementation in the USA is currently still based on GHS Revision 3, but an update to GHS Revision 7 is being sought.

USA – Import of hazardous substances

In addition to the US federal laws, there are also regulations on labelling and packaging, as well as national prohibitions and restrictions, which govern the import of dangerous chemicals. Applicable federal regulations include the Clean Air Act and the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act 1986.

There are also US state regulations, which are very strict in some cases. The California Proposition 65 is one of the most stringent and well-known examples. It requires the state to publish a list of dangerous chemicals that are known to cause cancer, malformations or other reproductive harm. Additionally, companies that sell products in California are required to inform the local population of significant amounts of the listed hazardous chemicals that are present in the products sold or in their personal or professional environment, or which are released into the environment. The list of around 800 hazardous chemicals is maintained by the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) and updated every year.

Import of hazardous substances to Canada

Canada has implemented the requirements of the GHS regulation with the Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS). The current implementation is based on GHS Revision 5 and an update to GHS Revision 7 is being planned. Bilingual, English and French, safety data sheets are required.

When importing hazardous chemicals to Canada, one has to check not only the inventory. Other prohibitions and restrictions, such as the Canadian Environmental Protection Act of 1999 and the related documents and the Prohibition of Certain Toxic Substances Regulations of 2012 (SOR/2012-285), must also be observed.

Hazardous chemicals – Legislation in Mexico

On 8th October 2015, Mexico published the harmonized system NOM-018-STPS-2015 for the identification and communication of hazards and risks caused by hazardous chemicals in the workplace. NOM-018-STPS-2015 is based on GHS Revision 5 and came into full effect on 8th October 2018. Mexico also maintains a chemical inventory, the INSQ (Inventario Nacional de Sustancias Químicas), which is not yet mandatory.