What to expect from environmental law in 2026 – Chemicals

This is the fourth of our five articles on what to expect from environmental law in 2026. This article focuses on Chemicals.

The approach to chemicals legislation in 2025 was fairly muddled.  There was greater public and political scrutiny on the effects of PFAS and the impacts of chemicals on the environment and health - for a summary of some of the key issues around PFAS, have a listen to our podcast episode on the topic. However, the long-awaited Chemicals Strategy was officially shelved, there was limited progress towards the implementation of the proposed REACH Alternative Transition Model and UK regulators arguably focused on consolidating their current activities rather than developing UK chemicals legislation further. 

Looking to 2026:

• The Environmental Audit Commit (EAC) has been progressing its PFAS Inquiry, with a further oral evidence session held on 10 December.  Topics discussed included a polluter pays model, standardised testing approaches and a proposal to establish a UK Chemicals Agency to deal with all chemicals regulation.  The outcome of the Inquiry and the EAC’s final report are expected to land in 2026 and may provide an indication of what the roadmap for PFAS regulation in the UK may look like. 

• We are expecting the publication of a PFAS Plan from DEFRA.  The Plan, which was announced in the EIP, will “set out a range of regulatory and non-regulatory interventions, measures and initiatives with specific actions and delivery milestones” to “raise understanding and awareness of PFAS in the environment, identify and address releases of harmful PFAS and protect people and the environment from harm relating to PFAS exposure”.  No specific release date has been announced yet and it may be that the Government waits for the outcome of the EAC’s PFAS Inquiry before publishing the Plan.  We have certainly seen an uptick in work arising form PFAS issues and the plan will hopefully dispel some uncertainty in this area.

• Subject to consent from Welsh and Scottish Ministers, industry deadlines for submitting transitional registration data under UK REACH are due to be pushed back by two and a half years following a recent consultation. The EIP confirmed that new legislation will be made by October 2026 to introduce the changes.  This will give businesses further time to adapt to the divergence between EU REACH and UK REACH post-Brexit.

• The EIP confirmed that reforms to UK REACH are being considered, which are expected to “enable protections that address chemical pollution to be applied more quickly, efficiently and in a way that is more aligned with our closest trading partners, especially the EU”. The EIP confirmed that this is likely to take the form of empowering UK regulators to take decisions based on decisions made in other “trusted” jurisdictions and aligning UK regulation more closely with our closest trading partners (i.e. the EU). Many of these principles have previously been floated by the Government and may provide an opportunity for more efficient regulation at a time when UK regulators are resource constrained. Businesses should therefore also continue  to keep an eye on developments in the EU, such as the outcome of the European Chemicals Agency’s (ECHA) evaluation of a proposed restriction on PFAS (with opinions from ECHA’s two evaluating committees due in March 2026).  The UK may chart a similar course in the future. 

• Regulators are likely to have a greater focus on persistent organic pollutants (POPs) during 2026 – particularly as they appear in waste. The EIP announced a target for the EA to carry out audits, sampling and testing at waste treatment sites in relation to the management and treatment of waste containing POPs to “ensure that POPs are destroyed and that appropriate monitoring and control of releases are in place”.  We wait to hear further details of how this will be implemented, but these targets suggest that the EA is seeking to take a tougher approach to regulating POPs in waste.

Burges Salmon advises on a wide range of environmental law, including the topics outlined above.  If you have any questions on environmental law please contact a member of the Environment Team.

Written by Helena Sewell.