February 13, 2023

ECHA Publishes Proposal to Restrict More Than 10,000 PFAS under REACH

On February 7, 2023, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) announced the availability of a much anticipated detailed proposal to restrict more than 10,000 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation. The national authorities of Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden (dossier submitters) submitted the proposal after finding risks in the manufacture, placement on the...
February 10, 2023

Turkey Updates KKDIK Registration Requirements

On February 3, 2023, the Turkish Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change (MoEUCC) released new guidance on the registration requirements under the KKDIK regulation (Kimyasalların Kaydı, Değerlendirilmesi, İzni ve Kısıtlanması). As a result of this new guidance, providing importer information for the registration of a substance is now optional instead of mandatory, the chemical safety report (CSR) may be submitted in English, and there is additional time after the...
February 2, 2023

What to Expect on Capitol Hill and at EPA OCSPP in 2023 — A Conversation with Jim Aidala

Download transcript. This week, I sat down with Jim Aidala, Senior Government Affairs Consultant at B&C and its consulting affiliate, The Acta Group. We discuss what to expect in 2023 from Capitol Hill and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP) when it comes to key chemical matters. Jim is, of course, one of the country’s most talented pesticide experts and, as a former Assistant Administrator of what...
January 30, 2023

Lynn L. Bergeson, “Risky Business: Deciding Whether Chemicals Pose Risk Is Getting Really Confusing,” American College of Environmental Lawyers (ACOEL) Blog, January 27, 2023.

Chemicals are the foundational origin of just about everything we enjoy and cannot live without. The federal law that authorizes the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate industrial chemical substances is the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), an almost 47-year-old law significantly amended in 2016 by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg). Lautenberg’s passage was a bipartisan triumph marking the do-over of a law that many...
January 30, 2023

Analyzing the EPA’s Proposal to List PFAS Chemicals as Hazardous Substances, January 30, 2023, via webinar

The Environmental Law Institute (ELI) presented “Analyzing the EPA’s Proposal to List PFAS Chemicals as Hazardous Substances,” focusing on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed rule designating perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) as “hazardous substances” under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). This webinar discussed what this designation means for products regulation and for...
January 27, 2023

EPA Proposes SNUR for PFAS Designated as Inactive on the TSCA Inventory

On January 26, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed a significant new use rule (SNUR) for those per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that are currently on the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Inventory but that have not been actively manufactured (including imported) or processed in the United States since 2006 and are consequently designated as inactive on the TSCA Inventory. 88 Fed. Reg. 4937. Persons subject to the SNUR would be required to notify...
January 26, 2023

HSE Begins Public Consultation on Changes to GB BPR Data Requirements

On January 17, 2023, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) began a public consultation on changes to the data requirements in the Great Britain (GB) Biocidal Products Regulation (GB BPR). GB BPR applies to the supply and use of biocidal products. Biocidal products are products that control harmful organisms, and include insecticides, rodenticides, wood preservatives, anti-fouling coatings on ships, disinfectants, and hand sanitizers. HSE is consulting on proposed revisions to Annexes...
January 25, 2023

Lynn L. Bergeson Joins Craig Williams for Lawyer 2 Lawyer Episode “Environmental Law Series: Inside The Toxic Substances Control Act”

On January 20, 2023, Lynn L. Bergeson, Managing Partner, Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) joined Craig Williams for “Environmental Law Series: Inside The Toxic Substances Control Act” on the Environmental Law series of the Lawyer 2 Lawyer podcast. During this conversation, Ms. Bergeson and Mr. Williams discuss history and impact of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) on the manufacturing, processing, distribution, use, and disposal of commercial and industrial chemicals. This...
January 25, 2023

EPA Requests Comment on NAMs to Screen for Endocrine Effects

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on January 19, 2023, the availability of and solicited public comment on a draft white paper entitled “Availability of New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) in the Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program (EDSP).” 88 Fed. Reg. 3406. EPA states that it developed the draft white paper pursuant to the Federal, Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), which requires EPA to develop a screening program to determine whether certain substances may...
January 23, 2023

EPA Announces Next Test Order Issued under National Testing Strategy for PFAS Used in Plastics, Chemical Manufacturing

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on January 4, 2023, that it issued the next Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) test order requiring testing on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under its National PFAS Testing Strategy. The test order requires companies to conduct and submit testing on trifluoro(trifluoromethyl)oxirane (HFPO), a perfluoroalkyl substance used in making plastics. EPA states that this is “the second test order under the strategy...