The Persistent Organic Pollutants (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2023

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations are made in exercise of the powers conferred by Articles 15(1) and 18(1) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1021 of the European Parliament and of the Council on persistent organic pollutants (recast) (“EUR 2019/1021”).

Regulation 2 adapts Annex 1 to EUR 2019/1021 to a change to the list of substances set out in Annex A to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (“the Convention”) (ratified by the United Kingdom on 17th January 2005). This change was adopted at the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention in Decision SC-10/13 (Listing of perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS), its salts and PFHxS-related compounds) and was notified to parties to the Convention under Depository Notification C.N.401.2022.TREATIES-XXVII.15. Regulation 2 also specifies the concentration limits up to which the newly listed substance may be present as an unintentional trace contaminant.

A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sector is foreseen. Instead a de minimis assessment has been prepared as this instrument is likely to entail some costs for businesses, but the net impact is estimated to be below £5 million per year.