[Principles of establishing the registries of chemical substances in the United States and Europe]

Abstract

The paper presents the principles of building up the inventories of chemical substances in the USA, the countries belonging to European Economic Community (EEC) and Austria. In all countries, the appropriate legal regulations putting the manufacturers and importers of chemicals under obligation to provide some strictly determined information underlie the decision to build up these inventories. The data provided usually inform of: manufacturer's name and address, chemical substance identity, production volume and ways of distribution. The paper presents also the criteria of selection of substances to be placed in the inventory, organizational scheme of building up the inventory and the ways of exacting the respective regulations. The inventories of chemical substances issued in the USA and Austria may serve as banks of information on the place, kind and quantity of chemical substances on the territory of the whole country. Based on these data a map of chemical hazards zones may be prepared which may adversely affect either human health or environment. The inventory of EEC countries may serve only as lists of chemicals occurring in the common market.