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Orange dangerous for the environment (N)

Orange dangerous for the environment (N)
Dangerous for the environment, under the old European system.

What it looks like

A dead fish and a leafless tree, black on an orange-yellow square, with the letter N.

What it means

Replaced by the GHS environment diamond, which covers aquatic toxicity. The old N classification was slightly broader, taking in ozone-depleting substances as well, and those now sit under the exclamation mark instead. Old aerosols and refrigerants are the likely place to meet one.

Defined by Directive 67/548/EEC (repealed). Where a symbol differs between standards, the difference is described above rather than resolved — both versions are in circulation on real labels.

Other hazard warnings symbols

Symbol Means
Exploding bomb (GHS01) Explosive, self-reactive, or an organic peroxide that can explode.
Flame (GHS02) Flammable — or a substance that heats up, ignites in air, or gives off flammable gas when wet.
Flame over circle (GHS03) Oxidising — it will feed a fire, including one that has nothing else to burn with.
Gas cylinder (GHS04) Gas under pressure — compressed, liquefied, refrigerated or dissolved.
Corrosion (GHS05) Causes severe skin burns and eye damage, or corrodes metal.
Skull and crossbones (GHS06) Acute toxicity — fatal or toxic in small amounts by swallowing, skin contact or inhalation.
Exclamation mark (GHS07) Irritant, skin sensitiser, harmful if swallowed or inhaled, or may cause drowsiness — the lower-severity hazards.
Health hazard (GHS08) Serious long-term health effects — cancer, genetic damage, harm to fertility or the unborn child, organ damage, asthma from inhalation, or fatal if swallowed and it enters the airways.
Environment (GHS09) Hazardous to the aquatic environment — toxic to fish and other water life.
Orange explosive (E) Explosive, under the old European system.
Orange oxidising (O) Oxidising agent, under the old European system.
Orange flammable (F, F+) Highly flammable (F) or extremely flammable (F+), under the old European system.
Orange toxic (T, T+) Toxic (T) or very toxic (T+), under the old European system.
Orange harmful or irritant (Xn, Xi) Harmful (Xn) or irritant (Xi), under the old European system.
Orange corrosive (C) Corrosive, under the old European system.
NFPA 704 fire diamond A US placard telling emergency responders how a stored chemical behaves in a fire.
Biohazard Biological material that can cause disease — blood, cultures, clinical waste.
Radiation trefoil Ionising radiation — a radioactive source or a device producing radiation.
Laser radiation Laser radiation — do not look into the beam.

Common questions

What does the orange dangerous for the environment (n) symbol mean?
Dangerous for the environment, under the old European system.
What does it look like?
A dead fish and a leafless tree, black on an orange-yellow square, with the letter N.

Related pages

Sources

  1. Official vendor product documentation — At One Place

How these figures are compiled and checked