What is monitoring of chemicals?

Monitoring relates to periodic monitoring of chemicals, their degradation products and traces in the environment and living organisms as stipulated by Article 51.a of the Chemicals Act (OJ RS No. 110/03 – official consolidated text and  47/04 - ZdZPZ.

Who is in charge of preparing, implementing and coordinating monitoring?

The National Chemicals Bureau is responsible for coordinating monitoring, while it is public health institutes and other institutions that implement it in accordance with their annual programme and action plan.
It is the minister who prescribes relevant requirements regarding professional and technical qualifications of relevant institutions to carry out monitoring. 

 
 
What is the purpose of chemicals monitoring?

The purpose of chemicals monitoring is to monitor measures adopted in accordance with Articles 49, 50 and 51 of the Chemicals Act. These measures are as follows:

• Bans and restrictions of trade or use of hazardous chemicals in the Republic of Slovenia
  o In order to provide safety of human health and the environment, the Minister may either ban or restrict trade or use of hazardous chemicals in the Republic of Slovenia that is governed by EU regulations or any other international agreements. 
• Provided that chemicals, their ingredients or degradation products impact on human health and the environment irrespective of whether they are in line with Article 2 (10) of the Chemicals Act classified as hazardous or non-hazardous, the minister may lay down requirements under which such chemicals or products containing such chemicals may be placed on the market or used. 
• Provisional restrictions or bans of production, trade and use of hazardous chemicals, introduction of measures aimed at guiding production, trade and use of hazardous chemicals as well as introducing other measures.
•  If there is just cause that a certain chemical causes severe or irreparable consequences for human health and the environment, the Republic of Slovenia many on a temporary basis ban or restrict any production, trade and use of such a chemical, introduce measures aimed at guiding its production, trade and use, as well as adopting other restrictive measures preventing its consequences or limiting them to an acceptable level even before compelling and irrefutable evidence is available as to this chemical’s impacts. 
• When it comes to decision making, the Government of the RS takes into account the gravity and dimensions of likely consequences for human health and the environment, as well as measures available for similar cases, complete (un)favorable consequences of possible measures, and scientific progress related to such chemical’s impacts. 
• Review of measures adopted when new knowledge on this chemical is available.
• The Government of the RS takes a decision on any further measures. This decision may provide for a partial or total abolition of measures adopted, extension of their validity or introduction of additional measures.
  

Contact point: Lijana Kononenko MSc