What is chemical risk assessment?
Chemical risk assessment (also known as chemical WPA) is a mandatory assessment of health risks when working with chemical substances and materials. It is part of the general workplace assessment but has specific requirements and seven mandatory elements.
gavel Legal basis
Chemical risk assessment is regulated by BEK 381/2023 on work with substances and materials (chemical agents), the STOP hierarchy, and the Danish Working Environment Authority guideline C.1.3.
When is it required?
Chemical risk assessment is required when working with:
- CLP-classified substances and mixtures
- Substances with Danish occupational exposure limits (OEL)
- CMR substances (carcinogenic, mutagenic, or toxic to reproduction)
- Asbestos
- Substances that may pose a risk due to their properties
info Exemption
Only exempt if the employer can document that the exposure is insignificant and harmless (section 8).
The 7 Mandatory Elements (section 6)
According to BEK 381/2023, section 6, the chemical risk assessment must include the following seven elements:
- Hazardous properties of the substances (H-statements, CLP classification)
- Level, type, and duration of exposure
- Work circumstances, including quantities
- Effectiveness of preventive measures (STOP hierarchy)
- Conclusions from occupational health examinations (if available)
- Occupational exposure limits set by the Danish Working Environment Authority
- Supplier information (Safety Data Sheets)
The STOP Hierarchy
The STOP hierarchy is the mandatory order of priority for protection against chemical risks. Measures must always be assessed in order from S to P.
| Step | Principle | Description |
|---|---|---|
| S | Substitution | Hazardous substances are replaced with non-hazardous or less hazardous alternatives. ALWAYS required. |
| T | Technical measures | Closed systems, process extraction, ventilation, encapsulation. |
| O | Organisational measures | Separation of work areas, limiting exposure time, instruction. |
| P | Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) | Last resort. Filtering respiratory protection max. 3 hours/day. |
Consequences of Missing Chemical Risk Assessment
warning Possible sanctions from the Danish Working Environment Authority
| Violation | Consequence |
|---|---|
| Missing chemical risk assessment | Improvement notice with deadline + possible advisory notice |
| Missing substitution assessment | Immediate enforcement notice or improvement notice with deadline |
| Exceeding exposure limit | Prohibition (work stopped) or immediate enforcement notice |
| Missing CMR protocol | Improvement notice + risk of fine |
| Gross violation | Fine or imprisonment up to 2 years |
Sample Checklist — Chemical Inventory
Excerpt from Normo's bilingual checklist for chemical inventory. The complete checklist with all checkpoints is available in the PDF guide.
| Checkpoint (DK) | Checkpoint (EN) | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Er der udarbejdet en kemikaliefortegnelse? | Has a chemical inventory been prepared? | Fixed |
| Produktnavn | Product name | Fixed |
| Leverandør | Supplier | Fixed |
| CLP-farekategori | CLP hazard category | Fixed |
| H-sætninger (fareklassificering) | H-statements (hazard classification) | Fixed |
| Årligt forbrug (liter eller kg) | Annual consumption (litres or kg) | Fixed |
| Sikkerhedsdatablad tilgængeligt og opdateret? | Safety Data Sheet available and current? | Fixed |
| Foto af kemikalieopbevaring | Photo of chemical storage | Fixed |
Download Complete Guide
10 pages with legal requirements, STOP hierarchy, chemical inventory, risk assessment per substance, storage, and CMR protocol.
download Download PDFUse the checklists digitally in Normo
Stop the manual paperwork. With Normo, you get all chemical risk assessments digitally in the mobile app.
- check Chemical inventory with automatic CLP lookup
- check STOP assessment per substance in the mobile app
- check PDF reports ready for the Danish Working Environment Authority