CHEmical Safety to Support circular economy (CHESS)

Sweden’s goal is to become climate-neutral by 2045. This requires a transformation of the whole society, and challenges must be tackled urgently. The transition from a linear to a circular economy (CE) carries such a transformation potential. However, conflicts exist between chemical regulations such as REACH and CE goals.

The circular transition is encumbered by challenges related to:Chemical regulations which do not consider complex circular loops.Slow registration processes, resulting in many chemicals on the market remaining unregulatedIncomplete information from chemical producers down the value chain.The project addresses these gaps with a systematic study on how CE actors can screen for harmful substances and communicate safety of products when existing regulations are lacking.

Our team aims to:develop and test a Machine Learning model for chemical screening;study acceptance and communication of chemical safety of CE products and offers;develop risk assessment criteria for CE scenarios;integrate findings into a risk management framework for circular actors.By the end of the project we will have achieved: a proof-of-concept prototype of the AI-based chemical screening tool; a CE ecolabel tested empirically with consumers in Sweden and Denmark; a set of risk assessment criteria for circular business models; a chemical risk management tool for CE.

In turn, the project increases understanding of chemical hazards among all CE actors and influences the circular transition.