Blogs

On December 29, 2008, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it is in the process of finalizing a major joint research effort with a number of United Kingdom (UK) agencies that is intended to develop and validate predictive tools and similar conceptual models that predict exposure, bioavailability, and effects of manufactured nanomaterials in the environment. The UK agencies include the Natural Environment Research Council, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research...

According to a notice in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) November 24, 2008, Regulatory Agenda, EPA intends to publish an interim evaluation in March 2009 of the Nanoscale Materials Stewardship Program (NMSP), and a final evaluation of the NMSP, including next steps, in April 2010. The NMSP is a voluntary program that EPA established to assemble existing data and information from manufacturers and processors of certain nanoscale materials. The notice states that, under...

On November 12, 2008, EHP-in-Press posted an article entitled “Oxidatively Damaged DNA in Rats Exposed by Oral Gavage to C60 Fullerenes and Single-walled Carbon Nanotubes.” According to the article, C60 fullerenes and single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) are expected to be used in medicine and consumer products with potential human exposure. The objective was to determine whether the hazardous effects of these particles involve oxidative stress with generation of oxidatively damaged...

On November 19, 2008, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the availability for review and comment of a petition requesting EPA regulate nanoscale silver products as pesticides under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). According to the notice, EPA “has determined that the petition raises issues that potentially affect private and public sector stakeholders.” The International Center for Technology Assessment (ICTA) and 13 other...

On November 12, 2008, the United Kingdom (UK) Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution (RCEP) published a report entitled Novel Materials in the Environment: The Case of Nanotechnology, which examines issues related to innovation in the materials sector and the challenges and benefits arising from the introduction of nanomaterials. According to RCEP, there is an “urgent need for more testing, extending existing governance arrangements and creating new arrangements concerning...

On October 17, 2008, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) began a public consultation on its draft scientific opinion in relation to nanoscience and nanotechnologies and food and feed safety.  EFSA’s draft opinion focuses on engineered nano materials (ENM) that could be deliberately introduced into the food chain and elaborates on approaches to risk assessment. EFSA states that it “is not an assessment of any specific application of ENM.” According to EFSA,...

On October 30, 2008, Consumers Union petitioned the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to require a full safety assessment on the use of engineered nanoparticles, particularly in cosmetics, sunscreens, and sunblocks, and “to investigate possible enforcement action to ensure accurate labeling as to the presence or absence of nanoparticles.” Consumers Union cites new findings in the December 2008 issue of Consumer Reports, and states that the findings “confirm...

Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency posted a submission made by BASF Chemical Company under Section 8(e) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), which requires U.S. chemical manufacturers, importers, processors and distributors to notify EPA within 30 calendar days of new, unpublished information on their chemicals that may lead to a conclusion of substantial risk to human health or to the environment. In its July 8, 2008, submission, BASF submitted the results of a...

According to the Office of the Federal Register, tomorrow the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will publish a notice regarding the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) requirements potentially applicable to carbon nanotubes (CNT). EPA states that it “generally considers CNTs to be chemical substances distinct from graphite or other allotropes of carbon listed on the TSCA Inventory.” As a result, many CNTs may therefore be new chemicals under TSCA Section 5. Manufacturers or...

On October 8, 2008, the European Commission (EC) published a regulation amending the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) Annex IV to remove carbon and graphite. Although the substances were originally listed in Annex IV, meaning they were exempt from REACH requirements because they were considered to be of minimum risk because of their intrinsic properties, a European Union (EU) expert committee delisted the substances in June 2008. According to the...

The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) recently posted two blog items regarding a consent order negotiated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The October 9, 2008, item states that EPA intends to issue a sanitized version of a consent order negotiated with a producer of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT). According to EDF, the order was prompted by EPA’s review of a premanufacturing notification (PMN). EDF obtained a redacted copy of the consent order, and...

In an October 2, 2008, Update entitled “NIOSH Nanotechnology Research News Notes:  New Papers on PPE, Toxicity; New Partnerships, Award,” the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) describes two new peer-reviewed papers, two new international partnerships, and a professional award....

On September 30, 2008, the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies (PEN) released the results of a poll regarding nanotechnology and synthetic biology. According to PEN, almost half of U.S. adults have heard nothing about nanotechnology, and nearly nine in 10 Americans say they have heard only a little or nothing at all about synthetic biology. PEN states that, based on the poll results, “the level of U.S. public awareness about nanotechnology has not changed measurably since...

Beginning November 15, 2008, the Continental Western Insurance Group will no longer cover bodily injury, property damage, or personal and advertising injury from “nanotubes or nanotechnology in any form.” The company said its intent was to “remove coverage for the, as of yet, unknown and unknowable risks created by the products and processes that involve nanotubes.” According to the company, “reports have raised concerns regarding health risks from workers that may be inhaling...

On September 25, 2008, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) announced the availability of ISO/TS 27687:2008, Nanotechnologies — Terminology and Definitions for Nano-Objects — Nanoparticle, Nanofibre and Nanoplate, which provides terms and definitions related to particles in the field of nanotechnologies. ISO states that it is “intended to facilitate communications between organizations and individuals in industry and those who interact with them.” The document is...

On September 18, 2008, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that, to ensure nanotechnology is developed in a responsible manner, the National Science Foundation (NSF) and EPA awarded $38 million to establish two Centers for the Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology (CEIN).  EPA contributed $5 million to the overall award, which is the largest award for nanotechnology research in its history.  The CEINs will conduct research on the possible...

On September 18, 2008, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that EPA Region 5 will host the 2008 International Environmental Nanotechnology Conference: Applications and Implications, October 7-9, 2008, in Chicago, Illinois. According to EPA, researchers from Asia, Australia, and Europe will join U.S. scientists and government officials to discuss nanotechnology applications for environmental cleanup, pollution control, and the implications of releasing engineered...

On September 10, 2008, the European Commission (EC) requested companies to submit data “with regard to all substances used at nano-scale and the final [cosmetic] products in which they are used.” Citing the December 18, 2007, opinion of the Scientific Committee on Consumer Products concerning the safety of nanomaterials in cosmetic products and the June 22, 2007, opinion of the Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly-Identified Health Risks regarding the appropriateness of...

The August 2008 issue of The Lancet Oncology includes an article entitled “Special Report: Policy — Future Priorities for IARC Monographs.” According to the article, carbon-based nanomaterials and ultrafine particles are included on the list of substances recommended by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Advisory Group as high priority for assessment. The article states that carbon-based nanomaterials are “present in many consumer products; carbon nanotubes...

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) held its publicized Public Meeting on Nanotechnology on Monday, September 8, 2008, near its main offices in Rockville, Maryland. The meeting consisted of a plenary session led by Dr. Norris Alderson, Co-Chair of the FDA Nanotechnology Task Force, followed by separate breakout sessions for prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) drugs, cosmetics, medical devices, food and color additives (including food contact substances), and...