The European Commission has softened plans for new environmental rules on the use of chemicals which European industry and the Irish Government have criticised as costly and unworkable.

Changes to the text of the regulations were made by the Commission this week after receiving about 6,000 comments from European firms, governments, lobby groups and individuals.

Several environmental groups yesterday criticised the decision to water down the proposed regulations, and Greenpeace warned that the weaker rules would enable industry to continue using chemicals that caused infertility.

The Government had lobbied strongly against the proposed rules and warned the Commission they would cost jobs across several industry sectors.

It is understood the Tánaiste, Ms Harney, was concerned that the new rules would pose a threat to the State industry's global competitiveness, and place a major financial burden on multinational firms such as Intel.

Details of the changes to the proposed chemical rules, known as REACH, were not published yesterday. But a spokesman for the Commission, Mr Per Haugaard, said the new version, agreed by the commissioners for environment and industry, Ms Margot Wallstrom and Mr Erkki Liikanen, was "well balanced", with some changes aimed at reducing the cost of the new system.

A Government spokesman said he would not comment until a final draft was published by the Commission.

The Commission is due to formally issue the bill by the end of this month and it could be amended in the meantime.

The bill would establish a system under which all chemicals produced in quantities of more than one tonne per year would have to be registered or banned.

Substances of particular concern, such as those that cause cancer, damage genes or affect fertility, or ones that persist and accumulate in the environment would be subject to a deeper evaluation and, in some cases, have to acquire a special permit to be used.- (Additional reporting, Reuters)