. /.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
G/TBT/N/CHE/151 
20 April 2012  
 (12-2128) 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade Original:   English 
  
 
NOTIFICATION 
 
The following notification is being circ ulated in accordance with Article 10.6 
 
1. Notifying Member:  SWITZERLAND  
If applicable, name of local governme nt involved (Article 3.2 and 7.2):     
2. Agency responsible:  Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) 
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers, email and website 
addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments 
regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above :   
State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) 
Non-tariff Measures Division Holzikofenweg 36 CH-3003 Berne Fax:   +41 31 324 09 58 
E-mail:  tbt@seco.admin.ch  
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X], 2.10.1 [   ], 5.6.2 [   ], 5.7.1 [   ], other:   
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading. 
ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):  Certain dangerous 
chemicals in specific applications (e.g. cadmiu m, dichloromethane), substances of very high 
concern (e.g. musk xylene, certain phthalates, hexabrom ocyclododecane, certain lead 
pigments), persistent organic pollutants (polyb rominated diphenyl ethers , and perfluorooctyl 
sulfonates), certain substances in electrical and electronic equipment, phosphates in detergents, perfluorocarbons.  
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:  Draft Revision of 
Ordinance on risk reduction related to chemical  products, Draft 28 February 2012, (57 pages, 
in German, French and Italian).     
6. Description of content:  The most important amendments of the Ordinance on risk reduction 
related to chemical products are:  
- Restricting marketing and / or use of products containing cadmium, organostannic 
 compounds, acrylamide, cyclohe xane, isocyanates, glycol ethers, dichloromethane 
 and dimethylfumarate. - Inclusion of fourteen substances in the a nnex of substances whic h are subject of an 
 authorisation process. 
- New thresholds for polybrominated diphenyl  ethers and perfluorooctyl sulfonates 
 (PFOS) in mixt ures and products. G/TBT/N/CHE/151 
Page 2  
 
   - Prohibition of the manufacture of the pestic ide endosulfan according to the decision 
 at the fifth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 5) to the Stockholm 
 Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs). 
- Recast of the existing provisions on electrical and electronic equipment. 
- Restriction of th e content of phosphorous compounds  in household products intended 
 to be used in automatic dishwashers. 
- Modifications of the existing provisions on substances stable in air (fluorinated 
 greenhouse gases covered by the Kyoto Protocol). 
The amendments are in line with recent amendmen ts of relevant legislation in the European 
Union.  
7. Objective and rationale, including the nature of urgent problems where applicable:  The 
revision of the Ordinance intends to improve the level of protection of human health and 
safety (in particularly of employees) and the environmen t against harmful effects from 
hazardous substances.  
8. Relevant documents:   Ordinance on Risk Reduction related to Chemical Products 
(SR 814.81), available in Fr ench, German and Italian  
For further information see: 
"http://www.bafu.admin.ch/doku mentation/medienin formation/00962/index.html?lang=de&
msg-id=43717 " 
9. Proposed date of adoption:   
Proposed date of entry into force:    October 2012 
December 2012 
10. Final date for comments:  60 days from the day of notification. 
11. Text available from:  National enquiry point [X], or address, telephone and fax 
numbers, e-mail and web-site addresse s, if available of the other body:  
http://members.wto.org/crnatt achments/2012/tbt/CHE/12_1379_00_F.pdf  
http://members.wto.org/crna ttachments/2012/tbt/CHE/12_1379_00_x.pdf  
http://members.wto.org/crna ttachments/2012/tbt/CHE/12_1379_00_x2.pdf