Industrial Chemicals Environmental Management Standard

The Industrial Chemicals Environmental Management Standard or ‘IChEMS’ was developed collaboratively by Commonwealth, state and territory governments to harmonise industrial chemical environmental risk management across Australia.

The Industrial Chemicals Environmental Management Standard (IChEMS) establishes nationally consistent standards for managing:

• import
• manufacture
• export
• use
• disposal, of industrial chemicals.

These standards work to reduce the impact of industrial chemicals on the environment.

The Commonwealth lists industrial chemicals in one of 7 schedules according to their environmental risk and assigns risk management measures or other controls to manage specific risks if appropriate. Prohibitions or restrictions may be applied to chemicals where risks cannot be controlled through risk management measures.

IChEMS will deliver more consistent environmental regulation across jurisdictions and make it easier for industry to choose and use less harmful chemicals.

For further information about IChEMS, please visit the Commonwealth Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) website Industrial Chemicals Environmental Management Standard IChEMS.

All Australian states and territories have agreed to implement the IChEMS Register through their existing environment protection frameworks. In NSW, the IChEMS Register is implemented through the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 (POEO Act).

How IChEMS applies in NSW

All NSW users and manufacturers of scheduled industrial chemicals on their own or in mixtures, or articles containing these chemicals and any person who disposes of wastes containing these industrial chemicals must comply with the risk management measures or prohibitions and restrictions specified in the register for that chemical.

A chemical user or manufacturer who fails to comply with a risk management measure specified in the IChEMS Register is taken to have caused a ‘pollution incident’ under the POEO Act. This allows the appropriate regulatory authority to take action to limit harm to the environment and human health.

Penalties may apply for failing to comply with the IChEMS Register.

Users or manufacturers of industrial chemicals listed in Schedules 6 or 7 of the IChEMS Register may need an environment protection licence in certain circumstances. See New scheduled activities for environmentally hazardous chemicals.

The changes to the POEO Act support NSW’s participation in the national approach to industrial chemical environmental risk management under IChEMS.

While a number of chemicals are already listed in the IChEMS Register under Schedule 6 or 7, as  of 1 July 2025 the three per and poly fluoroalkyl substances PFOA, PFOS and PFHxS (and related substances) are now also listed under Schedule 7.

These chemicals are now effectively banned from import, export, manufacture and use (unless exemptions apply) and new requirements are in place for the disposal of waste containing these chemicals.

In NSW we will be taking a staged approach to implementing IChEMS to ensure that stakeholders are aware of their obligations  and are consulted on any changes including any new licensing requirements.