The March 3, 2010, issue of InsideEPA.com’s Toxics Regulation News quotes Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.’s February 22, 2010, memorandum regarding the effects of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed amendments to the enforceable consent agreement procedures under Section 4 of the Toxic Substances Control Act....
On March 4, 2010, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection held a hearing entitled “TSCA and Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and Toxic Chemicals: Examining Domestic and International Actions.” The Subcommittee held the hearing to examine U.S. and international efforts to protect public health and the environment from persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) chemicals, how the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) is currently...
March 3, 2010
Health Canada Adopts Interim Policy Statement on Health Canada’s Working Definition for Nanomaterials
On March 1, 2010, Health Canada began a public consultation on its adoption of the Interim Policy Statement on Health Canada’s Working Definition for Nanomaterials (Interim Policy). Although Health Canada is accepting comments, it states that the Interim Policy “is effective immediately.” In preparing the Interim Policy, Health Canada states that it sought the informal feedback of some international stakeholders, industry trade groups, standards associations, and...
On February 25, 2010, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Environment held a hearing entitled “Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals in Drinking Water: Risks to Human Health and the Environment.” The Subcommittee intended the hearing to examine the science and regulation of endocrine disruptors that may be found in sources of drinking water. Witnesses included: The witness testimony is available online. Subcommittee members criticized the slow pace of...
March 1, 2010
Lynn L. Bergeson, “Aligning Chemicals Labeling with Global Rules Involves Major Efforts,” Chemical Processing, March 2010.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) began the Herculean task of aligning the U.S.’s Hazardous Communication Standard (HCS) with the United Nations Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS) in September 2009. GHS provides harmonized criteria for classifying chemicals according to their health and physical hazards, and specifies hazard communication elements for labeling and creating safety data sheets (SDS)....
February 26, 2010
Lynn L. Bergeson Will Speak at Conference Concerning Environmental Regulation and Commercial Implications
We are pleased to announce that Lynn L. Bergeson will be speaking at the upcoming conference entitled “Environmental Regulation and Commercial Implications 2010: How the New Administration, Congress and the Courts Have Changed the Rules.” The conference will be held in New York City on May 7, 2010, and in San Francisco on May 18, 2010. The conference will be broadcast live on the Internet on May 7, 2010. Since the election of President Barack Obama and the 111th Congress,...
February 25, 2010
ALI-ABA Will Hold Course on Chemical Control Law and Policy: Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. Professionals to Participate
On April 16, 2010, the American Law Institute (ALI) and American Bar Association (ABA) will hold an advanced one-day course of study on chemical control law and policy. The course will examine what practitioners need to know about the growing significance of industrial and pesticide chemical control law and regulation, providing updates on the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), and enforcement priorities for 2010, and a roundup on...
February 24, 2010
EPA Publishes Final Clarification for Chemical Identification Describing Activated Phosphors for TSCA Inventory Purposes
Today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published its final clarification under which certain activated phosphors that are not on the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Section 8(b) Chemical Substance Inventory (TSCA Inventory) will be considered to be “new” chemical substances under TSCA Section 5, and thus will be subject to applicable notification requirements under TSCA Section 5. According to EPA, the clarification is necessary because EPA’s statements in...
February 23, 2010
OIG Report Concludes EPA Needs Coordinated Plan to Oversee Its TSCA Responsibilities
On February 18, 2010, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) released a report entitled EPA Needs a Coordinated Plan to Oversee Its Toxic Substances Control Act Responsibilities, urging EPA to coordinate better risk assessment and oversight activities by establishing a management plan that contains new goals and measures that demonstrate the results of Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) and Office of Enforcement and Compliance...
February 22, 2010
EPA Proposes Amendments to TSCA Section 4 Enforceable Consent Agreement Procedures
On February 19, 2010, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed important revisions to the procedures for development of enforceable consent agreements (ECA) to generate test data under Section 4 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). 75 Fed. Reg. 7428 (Feb. 19, 2010). The proposed rule includes some sweeping changes for when and how negotiations will be initiated, conducted, and concluded, and limits the timeframe within which these activities will take place. Companies that...