Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC)
Certain toxic chemicals and their precursors are subject to legal requirements under the CWC, the first arms-control treaty to introduce a verifiable ban on an entire class of weapons of mass destruction across 193 countries (including the UK). The University is required to make an annual declaration on the productions, processing, consumption and import and export of these substances.
Schedule 1, 2 and 3 Chemicals
- If you have in this calendar year bought or used any chemicals which were purchased in previous years or imported or exported or produced any of the chemicals in the Schedule 1 list, the Schedule 2 list, or in the Schedule 3 list, you will need to report them in the annual return, which will take place next January.
- The following table will help you decide which CWC chemicals you need to report:
| Chemical |
|---|
| S1 bought in this calendar year from a UK company and not used |
| S1 bought in this calendar year from a UK company and used all or part of it in this calendar year |
| S1 bought before this calendar year from a UK company and used all or part of it in this calendar year |
| S1 bought before this calendar year from a UK company and NOT used any part of it in this calendar year |
| S2 bought in this calendar year from a UK company and not used |
| S2 bought in this calendar year from a UK company and used all or part of it in this calendar year |
| S2 bought before this calendar year from a UK company and used all, part of it or NOT used in this calendar year |
| S3 bought in this calendar year from a UK company and used or not used |
| S3 produced/manufactured in this calendar year |
| S1, S2 or S3 imported and/or exported in this calendar year |
Definitions under CWC legislation:
- Production: formation through chemical reactions or synthesis – that is, arising from a chemical change involving the formation and/or breaking of chemical bonds.
- Processing: physical manipulation of a chemical without a chemical reaction taking place, that is without the formation or breaking of chemical bonds i.e. where the chemical is not converted into another chemical e.g. formulation, extraction, purification, crystallization, distillation, condensation, consumption, dilution, concentration, compression and dispersion.
- Consumption: conversion of a chemical into another chemical through a chemical reaction involving the making or breaking of chemical bonds (i.e. bond rearrangement)
If you possess any chemicals in the Schedule 1 list, or have in this calendar year bought, or used any schedule 1 chemicals which were purchased in previous years, you should contact the Regulatory Compliance Team immediately. All Schedule 1 chemical possession and usage requires a license.
Disposing of CWC chemicals:
It is the responsibility of anyone who plans on disposing CWC chemicals to do so in accordance with the applicable legislation. You cannot use the standard waste contractor to dispose of these chemicals. The contractor collecting them must hold a special licence to receive them. Contact the Regulatory Compliance Team for advice before the disposal of such material.