The European Commission (EC) Joint Research Center (JRC) announced on July 10, 2015, the publication of its third report in its review of the EC recommendation on the definition of a nanomaterial. The report is the last in a series of three, and provides scientific support to the EC in its review of the definition used to identify materials for which special provisions might apply (e.g., for ingredient labeling or safety assessment). According to JRC, as the definition...
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has issued the following publications in its Series on the Safety of Manufactured Nanomaterials: No. 55 — Harmonized Tiered Approach to Measure and Assess the Potential Exposure to Airborne Emissions of Engineered Nano-Objects and their Agglomerates and Aggregates at Workplaces: The primary goal of this publication is to describe a reliable formal methodology for conducting consistent exposure related...
July 10, 2015
Bioproducts To Enable Biofuels Workshop Announced
On July 9, 2015, the DOE announced a public workshop to collect information about challenges that occur during coproduction of biobased chemicals, products, and biofuels. The Bioproducts to Enable Biofuels Workshop was organized by the Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) and will cover the following topics: Identifying and evaluating economic drivers for producing bioproducts. Identifying and prioritizing targets for bioproducts produced from biofuel waste streams, coproduced with...
On June 30, 2015, 46 U.S. Senators sent a letter to the EPA, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and USDA stating that "[f]ederal policies across all departments and agencies must remove any uncertainties and contradictions through a clear, unambiguous message that forest bioenergy is part of the nation's energy future." Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) and Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) headed the letter and pointed to the recognized carbon neutrality of forest biomass as a renewable...
With little fanfare or advanced notice to the general public, on July 2, 2015, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the U.S. Trade Representative, and the Council on Environmental Quality issued a memorandum directing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to update the Coordinated Framework for the Regulation of Biotechnology....
July 6, 2015
Biotechnology: White House Announces Effort to Modernize the Regulatory System for Biotechnology Products
In a bit of a surprise announcement, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the U.S. Trade Representative, and the Council on Environmental Quality released a memorandum on July 2, 2015, directing three federal agencies with jurisdiction over products of biotechnology, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to update...
On July 7, 2015, the American Chemical Society (ACS) will hold a webinar to address the White House’s recently announced Nanotechnology-Inspired Grand Challenges for the Next Decade. The webinar will feature ACS Nano Editor-in-Chief Paul Weiss and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy’s Lloyd Whitman. The webinar is free, and registration is open to the general public.
On June 16, 2015, the California Superior Court for the County of Almeda denied the petition of the Pesticide Action Network North America, et al. (PANNA) for a writ of mandate to direct the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) to set aside and vacate its final decisions approving amended registrations of Dinotefuran 20SG manufactured by Mitsui Chemicals Agro and Venom manufactured by Valent USA. The active ingredient in both products at issue, dinotefuran, is a...
On July 01, 2015, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a notice announcing the availability of and requesting public comment on a proposed guidance document called the Antimicrobial Pesticide Use Site Index (USI). In 2014, EPA issued a final rule amending the regulations setting forth the data requirements that support an application to register a pesticide product. The final rule contains the data requirements specifically applicable to antimicrobial...
July 2, 2015
Biobased and Green Chemistry Events July 2015
ACS Green Chemistry & Engineering Conference, July 14-16, 2015, North Bethesda, Maryland The longest running green chemistry conference in the United States, American Chemical Society Green Chemistry & Engineering (GC&E) Conference invites scientists, decision-makers, students, and advocates to come together, compare findings, and discuss the science of the future. BRAG is a proud sponsor. Richard E. Engler, Ph.D., will present a session on July 16, 2015, regarding how the Toxic...