Chemical safety assessment (CSA) "has to be performed by registrants for substances manufactured and imported in quantities starting at 10 tonnes per year and by downstream users if their uses are not addressed by their supplier," according to REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals) legislation.
The CSA includes the evaluation of all available relevant information in order to assess risks arising from the manufacture and/or use of a substance. The process needs to be documented adequately and the results have to be documented in a chemical safety report (CSR), which is to be submitted to the European Chemicals Agency as part of the respective registration dossier. The purpose is to ensure that the risks related to the substance are controlled.
The chemical safety assessment of a substance comprises the following steps:
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has developed a software tool to support industry in preparing a Chemical Safety Assessment (CSA) and Chemical Safety Report (CSR). Chesar Beta version can be downloaded from the Chesar website.
Chemical Safety Report
Chemical Safety Reports are the main end point for data assessment under REACH (the European Community Regulation on chemicals and their safe use, concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemical substances) in which hazard and exposure data are considered together to assess the risk of a substance.