The Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC) group is launching an online portal that will assess whether a chemical formulation complies with its manufacturing restricted substances list (MRSL).  The ZDHC chemical registry will include a list of chemical products and an MRSL conformity assessment for each chemical formulation.

It will also provide textile manufacturers with documentation showing the extent to which a chemical product conforms with the ZDHC MRSL and other chemical accreditations.

It is due to be launched in August.

The open, flexible data portal will help brands, suppliers and chemical companies assess a chemical’s compliance. Without this type of portal, each textile manufacturer would need to assess every product from each of their chemical suppliers against the ZDHC MRSL to ensure conformity.

The first step sees a chemical company register as a producer, manufacturer, or supplier of chemical formulations. The user can then register its formulations. To be listed and visible on the registry, a formulation must have a safety data sheet (SDS).

Once listed, the chemical company can apply for the formulation to be assessed for conformity with ZDHC’s MRSL.

The assessment, which includes the use of criteria from accreditation companies such as bluesign technologies, will attribute the formulation with a confidence level.

ZDHC will be working with chemical companies worldwide to include their product lists in the chemical registry.