. /.   WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/TBT/N/COL/151 
7 July 2010 
 (10-3693) 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade Original:   Spanish 
  
 
NOTIFICATION 
 
The following notification is being circ ulated in accordance with Article 10.6. 
 
1. Member to Agreement notifying:  COLOMBIA
 
If applicable, name of local government involved (Articles 3.2 and 7.2):  
2. Agency responsible:   Ministerio de Ambiente, Vivienda y Desarrollo Territorial – 
Dirección de Desarrollo Sectorial Sostenible  (Ministry of the Environment, Housing and 
Territorial Development – Directorate of Sectoral Sustainable Development)  
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers and e-mail and website 
addresses, if available) of agency or au thority designated to handle comments 
regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above:  Ministerio de 
Comercio, Industria y Turismo – Dirección de Regulación (Ministry of Commerce, 
Industry and Tourism – Regulation Department) 
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):   (i) Soap;  organic 
surface-active products and preparations for u se as soap, in the form of bars, cakes, 
moulded pieces or shapes, whether or not cont aining soap;  organic surface-active products 
and preparations for washing the skin, in the form of liquid or cream and put up for retail 
sale, whether or not containing soap;  pape r, wadding, felt and nonw ovens, impregnated, 
coated or covered with soap or detergent;  (ii) Organic surface-activ e agents (other than 
soap);  surface-active preparations, washing preparations (including auxiliary washing 
preparations) and cleaning preparations, whether or not containing soap, other than those of 
heading 34.01;  (iii) Scouring pastes and powders and other scouring preparations (3401, 3402, 3405400000, respectively). 
5. Title, number of pages and lang uage(s) of the notified document:   Proyecto de  
Resolución del Ministerio de Ambiente, Vivie nda y Desarrollo Territorial "Por medio de la 
cual se prohíbe la fabricación, importación, distribución y comercialización de detergentes 
o jabones que contengan fósforo por en cima de los límites máximos establecidos" (Draft 
Resolution of the Ministry of the Environment, Housing and Territorial Development "Prohibiting the manufacture, importation, distribution and marketing of detergents or soaps with a phosphorus content exceeding the maximum established limits") (17 pages, in Spanish) 
6. Description of content:   The notified draft Resolution prohibits the manufacture, 
importation, distribution and marketing of de tergents or soaps with a phosphorus content 
exceeding the specified maximum limits, with a view to preventing possible environmental 
risks.  It contains definitions and provisi ons relating to product labelling, conformity 
assessment, test methods for sample taki ng and physico-chemical product analysis, 
inspection, monitoring and control, penalties, notification, and validity. G/TBT/N/COL/151 
Page 2  
 
  7. Objective and rationale, including the na ture of urgent problems where applicable:  
To prevent human and animal health risks;  to prevent environmental damage caused by 
eutrophication (proliferation of algae in aquatic  environments due to the presence of large 
quantities of phosphorus in the water). 
8. Relevant documents:   Resolutions No. 427 of 2009 and No. 0451 of 2010.  Available in 
Spanish (will cease to have effect upon the entry into force of the draft Resolution). 
9. Proposed date of adoption:  
 
Proposed date of entry into force:  Date of publication in the Diario Oficial  
(Official Journal) 
Six months after date of publication in the 
Official Journal 
10. Final date for comments:   1 September 2010 
11. Texts available from:  National enquiry  point [X] or address, telephone and fax 
numbers, e-mail and website addresses,  if available, of other body:  
Enquiry Point : 
Contact person:  Daniel Héctor Rico R. Tel.: (+571) 606 7676, Ext. 1690 Fax: (+571) 241 0480 
E-mail: danielrico@mincomercio.gov.co
 
Dirección de Regulación 
Ministerio de Comercio, Industria y Turismo Calle 28 No. 13A - 15, tercer piso Bogotá, D.C. 
Colombia 
Tel.: (+571) 241 0478 Website: http://www.mincomercio.gov.co
 
Ministerio de Ambiente, Vivienda y Desarrollo Territorial 
Dirección Desarrollo Sectorial Sostenible 
Calle 37 No. 8-40 
Bogotá, D.C. Colombia Tel.: (+571) 332 3434 Fax: (+571) 332 3456 E-mail: jarodriguez@minambiente.gov.co 
Website: http://www.minambiente.gov.co
 
Also available at: 
http://members.wto.org/crnattach ments/2010/tbt/col/10_2640_00_s.pdf