Environmental hazard · Hazardous to the ozone layer
H420 — Harms public health and the environment by destroying ozone in the upper atmosphere
Environmental hazard statements describe harm to the aquatic environment, the ozone layer or the climate. 4 substances with a harmonised EU classification carry this code.
01 · Wording
What H420 says
Harms public health and the environment by destroying ozone in the upper atmosphere
Harms public health and the environment by destroying ozone in the upper atmosphere. How it usually reads on a label and on a safety data sheet. We show it separately rather than presenting a filled-in blank as the regulation's own text.
CLP Annex III · Environmental hazards
Hazardous to the ozone layer GHS chapter 4.2
Category 1 · pictogram GHS07 (exclamation mark) · signal word Warning
Unchanged since 2009.
Present in every UN GHS edition from Rev.3 (2009) to Rev.11 (2025), with the same wording throughout.
Nine editions of the UN model text, 86 hazard statements, 19 of which ever moved. Read the full story in what changed in UN GHS Rev.11.
02 · Languages
H420 in the 24 official EU languages
A label put on the market in an EU country must carry the wording of that country's own language version of CLP — not a translation of the English one. These 24 lines are quoted from the consolidated regulation, Annex III, and are the text to print.
| Language | Official wording of H420 |
|---|---|
| BG български Bulgarian | Вреди на общественото здраве и на околната среда, като разрушава озона във високите слоеве на атмосферата |
| ES español Spanish | Causa daños a la salud pública y el medio ambiente al destruir el ozono en la atmósfera superior |
| CS čeština Czech | Poškozuje veřejné zdraví a životní prostředí tím, že ničí ozon ve svrchních vrstvách atmosféry |
| DA dansk Danish | Skader folkesundheden og miljøet ved at ødelægge ozon i den øvre atmosfære |
| DE Deutsch German | Schädigt die öffentliche Gesundheit und die Umwelt durch Ozonabbau in der äußeren Atmosphäre |
| ET eesti Estonian | Kahjustab rahvatervist ja keskkonda, hävitades kõrgatmosfääris asuvat osoonikihti |
| EL ελληνικά Greek | Βλάπτει τη δημόσια υγεία και το περιβάλλον καταστρέφοντας το όζον στην ανώτερη ατμόσφαιρα |
| EN English English | Harms public health and the environment by destroying ozone in the upper atmosphere |
| FR français French | Nuit à la santé publique et à l'environnement en détruisant l'ozone dans la haute atmosphère |
| GA Gaeilge Irish | Déanann an t-ábhar seo díobháil don tsláinte phoiblí agus don chomhshaol trí ózón san atmaisféar uachtarach a scriosadh |
| HR hrvatski Croatian | Štetno za zdravlje ljudi i okoliš zbog uništavanja ozona u višoj atmosferi |
| IT italiano Italian | Nuoce alla salute pubblica e all'ambiente distruggendo l'ozono dello strato superiore dell'atmosfera |
| LV latviešu Latvian | Bīstams sabiedrības veselībai un videi, jo iznīcina ozonu atmosfēras augšējā slānī |
| LT lietuvių Lithuanian | Kenkia visuomenės sveikatai ir aplinkai, nes naikina ozono sluoksnį viršutinėje atmosferoje |
| HU magyar Hungarian | Károsítja a közegészséget és a környezetet, mert a légkör felső rétegeiben lebontja az ózont |
| MT Malti Maltese | Tagħmel ħsara lis-saħħa tal-pubbliku u lill-ambjent billi teqred l-ożonu fl-atmosfera ta' fuq |
| NL Nederlands Dutch | Schadelijk voor de volksgezondheid en het milieu door afbraak van ozon in de bovenste lagen van de atmosfeer |
| PL polski Polish | Szkodliwe dla zdrowia publicznego i środowiska w związku z niszczącym oddziaływaniem na ozon w górnej warstwie atmosfery |
| PT português Portuguese | Prejudica a saúde pública e o ambiente ao destruir o ozono na alta atmosfera |
| RO română Romanian | Dăunează sănătății publice și mediului înconjurător prin distrugerea ozonului în atmosfera superioară |
| SK slovenčina Slovak | Poškodzuje verejné zdravie a životné prostredie tým, že ničí ozón vo vrchných vrstvách atmosféry |
| SL slovenščina Slovenian | Škodljivo za javno zdravje in okolje zaradi uničevanja ozona v zgornji atmosferi |
| FI suomi Finnish | Vahingoittaa kansanterveyttä ja ympäristöä tuhoamalla otsonia ylemmässä ilmakehässä |
| SV svenska Swedish | Skadar folkhälsan och miljön genom förstöring av ozonet i övre delen av atmosfären |
Source: CELEX:02008R1272-20260501, Annex III. © European Union, https://eur-lex.europa.eu — only the electronic Official Journal of the European Union is authentic. Irish is one of the 24 official languages and its H and P texts are printed inside the multilingual Annex tables, but no consolidated CLP has ever been published in Irish — which is why an Irish-primary label cannot be built here.
03 · Legal status
Where H420 is current
GHS is a United Nations model text, revised every two years, and each jurisdiction adopts a revision on its own timetable. A code can be legally current in one system and deleted in another — that is normal, not an error.
| Jurisdiction | Basis | Status of H420 |
|---|---|---|
| EU CLP | Regulation (EC) 1272/2008 CLP Annex IV, Part 2 (consolidated) | Current |
| US OSHA HazCom | 29 CFR 1910.1200 Appendix C UN GHS Rev.7 (final rule of 20 May 2024) | Current |
| US HazCom 2012 | legacy · GHS Rev.3 UN GHS Rev.3, Annex 3 | Current |
| UN GHS | Rev.11 (2025) UN GHS Rev.11, Annex 3 | Current |
Currently in force under: EU CLP, US OSHA HazCom, US HazCom 2012, UN GHS. Sources: EU CLP · US OSHA HazCom · US HazCom 2012 · UN GHS
04 · Substances
Substances carrying H420
Every entry whose harmonised CLP Annex VI classification includes this hazard statement. Substances with a reference page here open on this site; the rest open on ghssymbols.com.
- 1,1-Dichloro-1-fluoroethane CAS 1717-00-6
- 1,1,1-Trichloroethane CAS 71-55-6
- bromomethane CAS 74-83-9
- carbon tetrachloride CAS 56-23-5
Nothing matches that filter.
All hazard statements
The full list of H-codes with the jurisdiction switch lives on the hazard statements hub. For what to do about the hazard, see precautionary statements (P-codes).
Wording quoted from the regulation named above. Substance counts come from harmonised classifications in CLP Annex VI — the statements on a real product also depend on the supplier's own classification. Always check the supplier safety data sheet.