Blogs

On August 27, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued two direct final rules promulgating significant new use rules (SNUR) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).  The first direct final rule promulgates SNURs for ten chemical substances that were the subject of premanufacture notices (PMN).  83 Fed. Reg. 43527.  The second direct final rule promulgates SNURs for 19 chemical substances that were the subject of PMNs.  83 Fed. Reg. 43538.  In each rule, EPA...

By Lynn L. Bergeson On August 17, 2018, researchers from the Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech) announced its progress in accelerating the process of biofuel-making. Through the use of biotechnology, their research demonstrates that an enzyme, glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase (GPAT) from the red algae Cyanidioschyzon merolae, can contribute to the biofuel production process. Algae is often used to produce biofuels because it contains high amounts of triacyglycerols (TAG) under...

By Lynn L. Bergeson Researchers from the University of British Columbia, in Canada, have discovered a new technique that can be used to transform “fatbergs” into green fuel. What scientists now refer to as “fatbergs” consist of oils and greases that cause blockages in the sewer systems accumulating disposed solids. These Canadian scientists revealed a new method in which “fatbergs” can be recycled into green fuel within the sewer system through a...

By Lynn L. Bergeson Under the Clean Air Act, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is required to set renewable fuel percentage standards annually. On July 10, 2018, EPA announced a request for comments on a proposed rule to address “volume requirements for cellulosic biofuel, advanced biofuel, and total renewable fuel that are below the statutory volume targets.” The proposal also included the applicable volume of diesel from biomass for 2020. In response to EPA’s...

By Lynn L. Bergeson On August 1, 2018, the Center for Food Safety filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) for its delay in the establishment of a national mandatory bioengineered (BE) food disclosure standard. In its lawsuit, the plaintiffs allege that AMS’ failure to implement a final rule is “inimical to the democratic process” and damaging to the public and stakeholders. On May 4, 2018, USDA announced a request...

The National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) has published The National Nanotechnology Initiative Supplement to the President’s 2019 Budget.  The August 2018 document not only supplements the President’s budget request for fiscal year 2019, but also serves as NNI’s annual report and addresses the requirement for Department of Defense (DOD) reporting on its nanotechnology investments.  President Trump requests nearly $1.4 billion for NNI, “a continued investment in...

On August 21, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it was posting new frequently asked questions (FAQ) for registrants and contract laboratories conducting honeybee toxicity testing.  EPA states that these FAQs are “made up of responses to inquiries EPA commonly receives about protocols used to generate honeybee toxicity data for submission in support of pesticide registration,” and are “meant to complement the Agency’s existing Pollinator Risk Assessment...

According to the Summer 2018 edition of the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office’s (NNCO) quarterly newsletter, in 2018, NNCO will focus on two of its primary responsibilities — providing public outreach and promoting commercialization of nanotechnology.  NNCO states that its activities “will build upon and expand efforts to tell the stories” from the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI), and to support the nanotechnology community by facilitating networks, promoting access...

The European Commission’s (EC) Joint Research Center has published a Technical Report entitled Mapping Nanomedicine Terminology in the Regulatory Landscape.  According to the abstract, to support a better understanding of terms used in the regulatory domain, the Nanomedicines Working Group of the International Pharmaceutical Regulators Forum (IPRF) prioritized the need to map, compile, and discuss the currently used terminology of regulatory scientists coming from different geographic...

By Lynn L. Bergeson On August 13, 2018, France’s Secretary of State to the Minister for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition, Brune Poirson, announced during an interview a new plan to charge ten percent more for packaged products that do not use recycled plastic in 2019. France aims to transition 100 percent of its packaging use into recyclable plastic by 2025. With this goal in mind, the French government will be introducing a number of measures to promote recyclable packaging. Some...