Blogs

The U.S. Department of Defense’s (DOD) Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and Environment is developing a proof of concept to conduct chemical alternatives assessments (AA) in collaboration with industry.  As a first step, DOD will conduct a pilot project to assess alternatives for a chemical of emerging concern to DOD and industry. According to DOD, a consortium of universities will assist DOD in the AA. To help with the chemical selection for the pilot...

As reported in our August 5, 2025, blog item, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced on August 1, 2025, an opportunity for stakeholders to provide feedback on USDA’s reorganization plan, as outlined in the July 24, 2025, memorandum issued by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins. According to the memorandum, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) centers “will remain at current locations as they are located in USDA hub locations.” The memorandum does...

On September 4, 2025, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) published the Trump Administration’s Spring 2025 Unified Agenda. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Unified Agenda includes the following rulemakings regarding per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS): PFAS Requirements in National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit Applications: EPA notes that the list of pollutants in the NPDES application regulations has not been updated since 1987 and...

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) recently published two standards for graphene-related two-dimensional (2D) materials: ISO/TS 9651:2025, Nanotechnologies -- Classification framework for graphene‐related 2D materials: The document specifies the characteristics and their respective measurement methods of graphene-related 2D materials in sheet and particle forms for commercial applications with the aim of classification of the materials. The classification framework...

As reported in our May 30, 2025, blog item, on May 15, 2025, the Center for Environmental Accountability (CEA) filed a petition under Section 21 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) requesting that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reconsider the 2024 final rule regarding procedures for chemical risk evaluation under TSCA and initiate a rulemaking to amend certain provisions in 40 C.F.R. Part 702, subpart B. According to CEA, the current process “has led to overly...

On August 25, 2025, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYS DEC) held a pre-rulemaking stakeholder meeting on its implementation of New York’s per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in apparel law. Section 37-0121 of the Environmental Conservation Law (ECL) prohibits the sale of apparel containing PFAS as intentionally added chemicals beginning January 1, 2025. No later than January 1, 2027, Section 37-0121 prohibits the sale of apparel containing PFAS at or above...

According to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) website, on August 29, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) submitted a proposed rule entitled “Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Data Reporting and Recordkeeping under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA); Revision to Regulation” to OMB for review. Because the proposed rule has not been published in a Unified Agenda, no summary is available. When EPA postponed the reporting period from July 11,...

The European Commission (EC) has published a report summarizing comments received during the public consultation for the initiative “Towards a circular, regenerative and competitive bioeconomy.” As reported in our April 1, 2025, blog item, according to the EC, the European Union (EU) Bioeconomy Strategy “marks a significant step forward in harnessing the opportunities of the bioeconomy to support European businesses and drive progress towards the EU’s environmental, climate and...

On August 13, 2025, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) announced that it petitioned the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission to remove per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from the food chain. PEER notes that its petition highlights three human exposure pathways it asks the MAHA Commission to address: Biosolid fertilizers made from sewage sludge contain high levels of PFAS. According to PEER, nearly 20 percent of U.S. agricultural land is estimated to use...

On July 23, 2025, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) announced the release of the Plan of Priorities, a multi-year plan that outlines upcoming priorities for the assessment of chemical substances. The Plan includes a list of more than 30 substances and substance groups prioritized for assessment and includes new or expanded activities to help assess, control, and manage risks posed by substances. ECCC states that in selecting and prioritizing these substances, considerations included:...