The Office of Science and Technology Policy published a Federal Register notice on January 23, 2018, announcing that the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO), on behalf of the Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSET) Subcommittee of the Committee on Technology, National Science and Technology Council (NSTC), “will facilitate stakeholder discussion of targeted nanotechnology topics through workshops, webinars, and Community of Interest meetings between...
January 22, 2018
ECHA Management Board Reviews Strategy on Substances in Nanoforms
During its December 14-15, 2017, meeting, the Management Board of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) discussed ECHA’s strategy on substances in nanoforms. According to the strategy, following recent rulings of the Board of Appeal, the “possibility for using dossier and substance evaluation under the current legal text of [the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation] to verify safe use of nanomaterials on the EU market has become...
On January 22, 2018, the White House again delayed the effective date of revisions to the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects, referred to as the Common Rule. Final revisions were published on January 19, 2017. On September 8, 2015, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and 15 other federal departments and agencies published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) proposing revisions to each agency’s codification of the Federal Policy for the...
January 19, 2018
EPA Offers Assistance to Manufacturers Reporting for the TSCA Inventory February 7, 2018, Deadline
On January 18, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) posted additional documents on its website, specifically materials from two webinars, designed to assist manufacturers reporting for the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Inventory Notification (Active-Inactive) Requirements final rule that became effective on August 11, 2017. The rule, which established a retrospective electronic notification of chemical substances on the TSCA Inventory that were manufactured...
January 19, 2018
Advanced Bioeconomy Leadership Conference February 28 – March 2, 2018, Washington D.C.
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. The Advanced Bioeconomy Leadership Conference 2018 (ABLC) will be held February 28 - March 2, 2018, at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C. ABLC is the gathering point for top leaders in the Advanced Bioeconomy -- bringing together the entire spectrum of advanced fuels, chemicals, and materials chief executive officers (CEO) and senior executives, business developers, research and development (R&D) leaders, strategic partners, financiers, equity...
January 19, 2018
AkzoNobel Launches 2018 Imagine Chemistry Challenge
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On January 10, 2018, AkzoNobel, a member of the Biobased and Renewable Products Advocacy Group (BRAG®), announced the challenges for its latest Imagine Chemistry program. AkzoNobel initiated the Imagine Chemistry program in 2017 to startup and scale-up firms and researchers for an opportunity to solve real industry challenges and create sustainable business opportunities in chemistry. Challenge winners receive joint development agreements with...
January 19, 2018
Japan Proposes To Revise Its Fuel Ethanol Policy
By Kathleen M. Roberts On January 2, 2018, the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) issued a Global Agriculture Information Network (GAIN) report on Japan’s fuel ethanol policy. According to the report, Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) is seeking public comments on changes to its fuel ethanol policy. The changes would establish a U.S. corn-based ethanol greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions value of 43.15; allow U.S. corn-based ethanol to be...
January 19, 2018
Rural Prosperity Task Force Presents Findings To President Trump
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On January 8, 2018, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue presented to President Donald Trump the findings of the Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity. The Task Force was established in 2017 following an Executive Order by President Trump to ensure the informed exercise of regulatory authority that impacts agriculture and rural communities. According to the report, over 100 actions organized around five key topic areas,...
January 16, 2018
NIOSH Will Use Experience in Managing Engineered Nanomaterials to Address Advanced Manufacturing
Charles Geraci, PhD, CIH, FAIHA, Associate Director for Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), and Laura Hodson, MSPH, CIH, FAIHA, Coordinator of the NIOSH Nanotechnology Research Center, co-authored an article entitled “From ‘Just in Time’ to ‘Just Next Door’: 21st-century Manufacturing Challenges and Opportunities for Industrial Hygienists.” The American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) published...
On January 10, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued its final rule to adjust the level of statutory civil monetary penalty amounts under the statutes that EPA administers, including the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). 83 Fed. Reg. 1190. This follows EPA’s July 2016 interim final rule adjusting penalty amounts for (FIFRA) violations by more than three times the current level, in some cases, as well as the level of statutory...
January 12, 2018
EFSA Begins Public Consultation on Guidance for the Risk Assessment of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Applications
On January 12, 2018, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) opened a public consultation on its draft guidance for the risk assessment of nanoscience and nanotechnology applications in the food and feed chain. The guidance covers the relevant areas within EFSA’s remit, such as novel foods, food contact materials, food and feed additives, and pesticides. EFSA notes that the guidance takes account of scientific developments that have taken place since publication of the previous...
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has updated its eNOA upload template that was initially released in 2017 to assist filers with the Central Data Exchange (CDX) system. The eNOA, or electronic Notice of Activity (NOA) Form, is used for retrospective reporting under the amended Toxic Substances Control Act’s (TSCA) Inventory notification requirements. The eNOA template, available for download from within the eNOA system on CDX, assists users to upload many...
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. Researchers at the National University of Colombia (UN) have designed and patented a faster and less costly process for producing biodiesel. The process uses a tube reactor that allows the oil from crops, such as palm, soybean, or jatropha and alcohol, such as methanol, to flow in opposite directions and react without mixing. Differences in density cause the biodiesel-containing oil phase to rise while the alcohol phase containing glycerol...
By Kathleen M. Roberts On January 2, 2018, Clariant, a specialty chemicals company, announced the development of a new biobased polymer for cosmetic creams and lotions. The new ingredient is a rheology modifier that influences formulation viscosity and achieves specific sensorial and texturizing properties for creams and lotions, but does not change the properties of an application. The polymer contains more than 50 percent renewable carbon derived from sugar-based...
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On December 28, 2017, New York City Council Member Costa Constantinides announced that the New York City Council unanimously passed a bill on the use of alternative fuels and alternative fuel technologies in the city ferry fleet (INT. 54). The legislation would require a two-year study on the feasibility of using alternative fuel, including biodiesel, and fuel technologies, including hybrid electric or fuel-cell electric, in city ferries. The study...
January 12, 2018
ITA Issues CVD Orders On Biodiesel From Argentina And Indonesia
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On January 4, 2018, the International Trade Administration (ITA) issued in the Federal Register a notice of the countervailing duty (CVD) orders on biodiesel from Argentina and Indonesia based on the affirmative final determinations by the Department of Commerce (DOC) and the International Trade Commission (ITC). As reported in the Biobased and Renewable Products Advocacy Group (BRAG®) blog post ITC Issues Final Determinations On Biodiesel From Argentina...
January 12, 2018
USDA Awards Nearly Three Million In Funding For Integrated Biorefinery Optimization
By Kathleen M. Roberts On January 4, 2018, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) awarded the University of Tennessee a $2,994,429 grant to improve biorefinery technologies through the Integrated Biorefinery Optimization (IBO) program. The project aims to develop and commercialize solvent fractionated lignins to polymeric products for their potential market in building and construction sectors. The overarching goal of the...
January 11, 2018
DPR Issues Notice Restricting Certain Applications or Amendments for Products Containing Active Ingredients under Reevaluation
On January 3, 2018, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) issued Notice 2018-01: Expanding Use of Pesticide Products Under Reevaluation. Under Notice 2018-01, effective immediately, DPR will not act upon an Application for Pesticide Registration or an Application to Amend a Pesticide Product if it determines the registration or acceptance would potentially “expand use” of an active ingredient or pesticide product currently under reevaluation until the...
On January 5, 2018, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) filed a Petition for Review in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (Second Circuit) of what is characterized as a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) “final rule” issued November 7, 2017, entitled “New Chemicals Decision-Making Framework: Working Approach to Making Determinations under Section 5 of TSCA.” The Framework Document, as it has come to be called, is the “final rule” at issue...
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Margaret R. Graham On January 10-11, 2018, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s (NAS) Standing Committee on Use of Emerging Science for Environmental Health Decisions (ESEHD) convened a workshop entitled “The Promise of Genome Editing Tools to Advance Environmental Health Research.” The meeting is intended to bring together experts in molecular biology, toxicology, and public health to explore opportunities for using...
January 10, 2018
IOSH Publishes Research Report and Industry Guidance on Nanotechnology in Construction and Demolition
On January 8, 2018, the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) announced the availability of a research report on nanotechnology in construction and demolition, as well as guidance for industry. The aim of the research was to provide clarity regarding the current use of nanomaterials in the built environment and the potential benefits and risks arising for those working in the construction and demolition sectors. Research included review of academic...
January 9, 2018
Germany Publishes Report on Scientific Stakeholder Meeting on Nanomaterials in the Environment
The German Environment Agency (UBA) has published a report summarizing the contents and outcomes of the October 2017 scientific stakeholder meeting on nanomaterials in the environment. The meeting focused on the relevant regulatory results of recent German and European research projects on nanomaterials in the environment. The stakeholder meeting provided a forum for participants to present the state of the knowledge on environmental nanosafety in a regulatory context, as well as to...
January 8, 2018
States Support Plaintiffs Lawsuit that Prop 65 Warning for Products Containing Glyphosate Violates First Amendment
On January 2, 2018, State Attorneys General from eleven states (Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Wisconsin) (collectively the States) filed a friend of the court brief in Nat’l Ass’n of Wheat Growers v. Zeise, E.D. Cal. (No. 2:17-cv-02401) (Brief), a case challenging California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment’s (OEHHA) decision to list glyphosate as a carcinogen under Proposition 65 (Prop 65). OEHHA...
January 8, 2018
EEB Finds Estonian EU Council Presidency Failed to Fill Regulatory Gaps on Nanomaterials
The European Environmental Bureau (EEB) announced on December 22, 2017, the availability of its assessment of the environmental performance of the Estonian Presidency of the European Union (EU). The assessment is based on the results of “Ten Green Tests” laid out at the beginning of Estonia’s Presidency. The eighth test is protecting the public from hazardous chemicals, including mercury. The test includes encouraging the European Commission (EC) “to develop a...
January 8, 2018
States Support Plaintiffs Lawsuit that Prop 65 Warning for Products Containing Glyphosate Violates First Amendment
On January 2, 2018, State Attorneys General from eleven states (Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Wisconsin) (collectively the States) filed a friend of the court brief in Nat’l Ass’n of Wheat Growers v. Zeise, E.D. Cal. (No. 2:17-cv-02401) (Brief), a case challenging California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment’s (OEHHA) decision to list glyphosate as a carcinogen under Proposition 65 (Prop 65). OEHHA...
Time is running out on the Pesticide Registration Improvement Act (PRIA), and it could die a natural death on January 19, 2018, absent Congressional action. Congress enacted PRIA in 2003 and in so doing established a fee schedule for pesticide registration and amendment applications and critically important specified decision time periods within which the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must make a regulatory decision. PRIA has been reauthorized twice, and was...
Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.’s (B&C®) much anticipated and highly acclaimed annual Forecast, “Predictions and Outlook for U.S. Federal and International Chemical Regulatory Policy 2018,” is now available. In the Forecast, the lawyers, scientists, and chemical regulatory specialists at B&C and its affiliated consulting firm, The Acta Group (Acta®), offer comprehensive and highly useful observations on the fast-changing and nuanced area of domestic and global chemical legal,...
January 5, 2018
B&C Publishes Predictions and Outlook for U.S. Federal and International Chemical Regulatory Policy 2018
Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) and its consulting affiliate The Acta Group (Acta®) published on January 4, 2018, their “Predictions and Outlook for U.S. Federal and International Chemical Regulatory Policy 2018.” In the Forecast, the lawyers, scientists, and chemical regulatory specialists at B&C and Acta offer comprehensive and highly useful observations on the fast-changing and nuanced area of domestic and global chemical legal, scientific, and regulatory issues expected...
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On December 21, 2017, Neste, a member of the Biobased and Renewable Products Advocacy Group (BRAG®), announced the launch of its online hub focused on sustainable aviation solutions. Decarbonizingaviation.com is an online platform designed to raise awareness and facilitate dialog in reducing the aviation industry's carbon footprint. The results of a recent survey by Neste demonstrate that 50 percent of travelers consider it important that...
By Kathleen M. Roberts On December 28, 2017, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) issued in the Federal Register a notice regarding its final determination on the antidumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) investigations of biodiesel imports from Argentina and Indonesia. Pursuant to the Tariff Act of 1930, ITC determined that an industry in the United States is materially injured by reason of imports of biodiesel from Argentina and Indonesia, which have been found by the...
January 5, 2018
USDA Announces Support For SBIR Phase II Projects
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On December 22, 2017, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) announced the release of a request for applications (RFA) for Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) projects. The SBIR program is comprised of three phases. During Phase I, applicants determine the scientific or technical feasibility of their proposed ideas. Phase II requires a more comprehensive application, outlining the...
January 5, 2018
DOE Awards $1.5 Million Grant For Algae Biofuel Production
By Kathleen M. Roberts On December 14, 2017, General Automation Lab Technologies (GALT) announced that the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) awarded Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) a three year $3.5 million grant to improve the growth and efficiency of biofuel-producing algae. LLNL and GALT will collaborate on the project, which also aims to reduce wasted byproducts of photosynthesis by targeting microbiomes that can more efficiently recycle it back to carbon dioxide...
January 5, 2018
EPA Proposes New Fuel Pathways Under RFS Program
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On December 27, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed to approve new fuel pathways under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program. Specifically, EPA is proposing to amend RFS regulations to define the term “distillers sorghum oil” and to add approved pathways from the production of biodiesel and heating oil from distillers sorghum oil via a transesterification process, and renewable diesel, jet fuel, heating oil, naphtha,...
Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.’s (B&C®) much anticipated and highly acclaimed annual Forecast, “Predictions and Outlook for U.S. Federal and International Chemical Regulatory Policy 2018,” is now available. In the Forecast, the lawyers, scientists, and chemical regulatory specialists at B&C and its affiliated consulting firm, The Acta Group (Acta®), offer comprehensive and highly useful observations on the fast-changing and nuanced area of domestic and...
On January 3, 2018, officials with the Arkansas State Plant Board (Plant Board) voted 11 to 3 to uphold its statewide ban of dicamba. The vote came after a subcommittee of the state's legislative council asked the board to reevaluate its earlier decision. The subcommittee will revisit the Plant Board's decision again on January 16, 2018. That the subcommittee plans to revisit its decision in just two weeks is noteworthy and illustrates the controversy surrounding this and other...
Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.’s (B&C®) much anticipated and highly acclaimed annual Forecast, "Predictions and Outlook for U.S. Federal and International Chemical Regulatory Policy 2018," is now available. In the Forecast, the lawyers, scientists, and chemical regulatory specialists at B&C and its affiliated consulting firm, The Acta Group (Acta®), offer comprehensive and highly useful observations on the fast-changing and nuanced area of domestic and global chemical legal,...
January 4, 2018
Ninth Circuit Simultaneously Denies Motion to Dismiss Without Prejudice and Grants Motion to Expedite in Chlorpyrifos Litigation
On December 20, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued an order in LULAC v. Pruitt, Case No. 17-71636, a case challenging an order denying administrative petitions to revoke the tolerances and cancel the registrations for chlorpyrifos. The court’s order includes actions concerning two pending motions. The court has denied a motion by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Administrator Pruitt (Respondents) to dismiss the case for lack of...
January 3, 2018
EPA to Host Two Webinars on Generating and Entering the Annual Report into CDX for Third-Party Certifiers
On January 3, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced it would be hosting two webinars to support Third-Party Certifiers (TPC) in generating and entering annual report information into the Central Data Exchange (CDX). Registration is available online through the following links: the webinars will be held on January 9, 2018, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. (EST); and on February 1, 2018, from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. (EST). Both webinar presentations will provide...
December 29, 2017
NIOSH Plans to Support Implementation of WHO Guidelines to Protect Workers from Nanomaterials
On December 15, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) posted a blog item entitled “WHO Guidelines to Protect Workers from Nanomaterials.” As reported in our December 13, 2017, blog item, the World Health Organization (WHO) recently published WHO Guidelines on Protecting Workers from Potential Risks of Manufactured Nanomaterials. NIOSH Director John Howard, MD, describes the WHO Guidelines as “an important step in protecting workers worldwide from the...
On December 27, 2017, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (Ninth Circuit) ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to revise its nearly 17-year-old standard for levels of lead in paint and dust within one year. A Cmty. Voice v. EPA, No. 16-72816. The Ninth Circuit held that “EPA was under a duty stemming from the Toxic Substances Control Act and the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992 to update lead-based paint...
In early December 2017, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) published Frontiers 2017: Emerging Issues of Environmental Concern. The report covers six key emerging issues: the environmental dimension of antimicrobial resistance; nanomaterials; marine protected areas and sustainable development; sand and dust storms; off-grid solar solutions; and environmental displacement. The section on nanomaterials addresses nanodimensions — new discoveries about familiar materials;...
On December 22, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sent to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a proposed rule establishing fees on certain submissions under amended Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Sections 4, 5, and 6. EPA has indicated that it expects to propose the rule in the early part of the New Year: EPA’s regulatory agenda lists February 2018 for the proposed rule and September 2018 for the final rule. More...
December 22, 2017
In Case of First Impression, Court Rules EPA Wrongly Dismissed Citizen Group’s TSCA Section 21 Petition
On December 21, 2017, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California ruled that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had wrongly dismissed a Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Section 21 petition submitted by Food & Water Watch, Inc. and other citizens seeking the regulation of fluoridation of drinking water supplies under TSCA Section 6(a) on grounds that the ingestion of fluoride poses an unreasonable risk to humans. Food & Water Watch, Inc. v....
On December 14, 2017, the Missouri Department of Agriculture (MDA) announced that it issued and collected the first round of fines resulting from investigations regarding the pesticide dicamba. The news release states that the first wave of civil penalties issued to applicators, all from Dunklin County, were issued as “a result of investigations of complaints during the 2016 growing season,” and the “civil penalties, ranging from $1,500 to $62,250, were issued for pesticide...
December 22, 2017
Neste Announces Expansion Of Singapore Refinery
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On December 12, 2017, Neste, a member of BRAG, announced that its additional production capacity for renewable diesel, renewable aviation fuel, and raw materials for various biochemical uses will be located in Singapore. Following the decision, Neste will develop the technical design for the new product line, with the goal of securing a final investment decision by the end of 2018 and starting production by 2022. The project will expand the capacity of...
December 22, 2017
FCIC Intends To Issue Funding Opportunity For Biomass Processing
By Kathleen M. Roberts On December 11, 2017, the Feedstock-Conversion Interface Consortium (FCIC) announced its intent to issue a Directed Funding Opportunity (DFO) aimed at accelerating innovation and adoption of new practices and technologies to determine the root cause of biomass handling failures and designing solutions. FCIC is a collaborative network of eight DOE national laboratories dedicated to understanding and addressing technical risks in developing and scaling up biomass...
December 22, 2017
DOE Announces $100 Million In Funding For Transformative Energy Projects
By Kathleen M. Roberts On December 13, 2017, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced the availability of up to $100 million in funding to support innovators through early-stage research and development (R&D) projects focused on technologies to transform the nation’s energy system. The funding will be provided through the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) OPEN funding opportunity. OPEN funding opportunity announcements (FOA), which are typically...
December 22, 2017
EPA Publishes Final 2018 RFS Requirements
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On December 12, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published in the Federal Register the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) Program: Standards for 2018 and Biomass-Based Diesel Volume for 2019 final rule. This final rule sets the annual percentage standards for cellulosic biofuel, advanced biofuel, and total renewable fuel for motor vehicle gasoline and diesel produced or imported in 2018, as well as biomass-based diesel for 2019. As...
December 21, 2017
EPA Signals New Rulemakings On Worker Protection Standard and Certification of Pesticide Applicators
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced, in two separate notices, that it is initiating a process to revise (1) certain requirements in the Agricultural Worker Protection Standard (WPS) (82 Fed. Reg. 60576 (Dec. 21. 2017)); and (2) to revise the minimum age requirements in the Certification of Pesticide Applicators (C&T) rule. 82 Fed. Reg. 60195 (Dec. 19. 2017). For the WPS rulemaking, the provisions at issue were identified as part of the...
December 19, 2017
EPA Releases Draft Human Health and Ecological Risk Assessments for Glyphosate for Public Comment
On December 18, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it is releasing for public comment the draft human health and ecological risk assessments for glyphosate. EPA’s Draft Human Health and Ecological Risk Assessments for Glyphosate website states that the “draft risk assessments and supporting documents will be available in glyphosate’s registration review docket EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0361 on www.regulations.gov in early 2018,”...