The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) of Japan recently announced that, after testing 643 notified chemical substances, 17 have been confirmed to possess high mutagenic properties, capable of causing permanent DNA changes. The testing results and a list of the chemicals have been published in the official gazette.

As of December 7, 2023, the Industrial Safety and Health Act (ISHA) identifies a total of 1,346 substances with high mutagenicity. In response, the MHLW has issued guidelines requiring businesses handling these chemicals to implement the following measures to safeguard workers’ health:

• Manage the work environment, including adjusting usage conditions, improving workflows, enhancing equipment encapsulation, and installing local exhaust ventilation.
• Adopt work positions and methods that minimize exposure to highly mutagenic chemicals.
• Use personal protective equipment, including respiratory protection and gloves.
• Minimize exposure time to harmful chemicals.
• Regularly measure, monitor, and record the work environment, keeping results of environmental measurements and evaluations for 30 years.
• Provide training on the hazards, health risks, preventive measures, emergency actions, and maintenance of related equipment.

Additionally, businesses must ensure the effective operation and regular maintenance of local exhaust ventilation, the availability and proper upkeep of protective equipment, and the proper functioning of supplied-air respirators to prevent harmful inhalation.

The MHLW also emphasizes that businesses must label chemical containers and packaging according to safety regulations and inform users through Safety Data Sheets (SDS) or similar methods.

This new measure strengthens chemical safety management, aiming to reduce worker exposure to hazardous chemicals and ensure public health and safety.

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