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The Environmental Protection Administration and Ministry of Transportation and Communications of Taiwan issued the Amendment to the Toxic Chemical Substances Transportation Management Regulations and the Renaming of the Regulations as Toxic and Concerned Chemical Substances Transportation Management Regulations (修正「毒性化學物質運送管理辦法」，並修正名稱為「毒性及關注化學物質運送管理辦法」) (the amendment) on 22 January 2020. The amendment aims to expand the regulated scope of the Toxic and Concerned Chemical Substances Transportation Management Regulations to include chemicals of concern, a new concept introduced under the latest amendment to the Toxic and Concerned Chemical Substances Control Act issued in January 2019.
In addition vehicles transporting designated chemicals, such as Classes 1 through 3 toxic chemicals, are required to have a real-time tracking system installed before they are permitted on the road. This system must be approved by the Taiwan EPA. Detailed specifications of this real-time tracking system are prescribed under the Specifications of Real-Time Tracking Systems for Vehicles Transporting Toxic and Concerned Chemical Substances. The amendment became effective on the publication date, with the exception of Article 11.3, which prescribes the information transmission requirements applicable to vehicles that are not required to have a real-time tracking system installed. This article will become effective on 1 July 2020.
Verisk 3E Review
Specifically, the following major revisions have been introduced to the Toxic Chemical Substances Transportation Management Regulations (the regulations) under the amendment:
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Incorporating the concept of chemicals of concern under the scope of application for the regulations. As a result, these chemicals are now subject to the restrictions on the transport of toxic chemicals, as prescribed under the amendment.
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Clarifying that transport of toxic chemicals and chemicals of concern by air is exempt from the requirement of filing a Regular Transport Form if the volume of concerned chemicals transported does not exceed the threshold levels prescribed under Article 3 of the amendment. Companies transporting these chemicals are still subject to the requirement of furnishing a Simplified Transport Form.
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Imposing an approval requirement for vehicles that transport chemicals for which a Regular Transport Form is needed. Specifically, these vehicles must have a real-time tracking system installed that meets the specifications prescribed by the Taiwan EPA and is approved by the Taiwan EPA. Examples of these chemicals include Classes 1 through 3 Toxic Chemicals and designated hazardous chemicals of concern if the volume transported reaches the thresholds prescribed under Article 3 of the regulations.
To further implement the specification and approval requirements for vehicles transporting designated chemicals, the Taiwan EPA issued the Specifications of Real-Time Tracking Systems for Vehicles Transporting Toxic and Concerned Chemical Substances (毒性及關注化學物質運送車輛即時追蹤系統規格) on the same day as the amendment (22 January 2020). These specifications became effective on 24 January 2020. Detailed information on the specifications is available in Chinese.
Background Information
The concept of chemicals of concern was newly introduced under the Toxic and Concerned Chemical Substances Control Act (毒性及關注化學物質管理法), which was amended in January 2019. Pursuant to the Toxic and Concerned Chemical Substances Control Act, chemicals of concern refer to chemical substances, other than toxic chemicals, that have been officially announced by the Taiwan EPA as posing threats to the environment or human health due to their characteristics or public safety concerns. Toxic chemicals refer to chemical substances that are intentionally produced by human activity or unintentionally derived from production processes. These substances meet the classification criteria as prescribed under the act and have been officially designated by the Taiwan EPA.
Verisk 3E Analysis
Companies that transport toxic chemicals and chemicals of concern in Taiwan, including those that consign these chemicals for transport, should note that the Taiwan EPA has revised the Toxic Chemical Substances Transportation Management Regulations to impose additional requirements on the transport of toxic chemicals and chemicals of concern, including installation of a real-time tracking system on vehicles transporting these substances.
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