On January 24, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the draft risk evaluation of carbon tetrachloride, “a solvent primarily used in the manufacturing of chlorinated compounds and petrochemicals.” Carbon tetrachloride is the seventh of the first ten chemicals to undergo risk evaluation under the amended Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). EPA published a Federal Register notice on January 27, 2020, announcing the availability of the draft risk...
Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) is pleased to announce the release of the complete suite of TSCA Tutor™ regulatory training courses online and on-demand at www.TSCAtutor.com. Professionals seeking expert, efficient, essential training can preview and enroll in on-demand classes to complete at their own pace and timing. In addition to the newly released online e-learning courses, B&C’s TSCA Tutor™ training platform offers live in-person training at a...
On January 14, 2020, California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) adopted amendments it proposed on November 16, 2018, and modified on October 4, 2019, to the Proposition 65 (Prop 65) regulations setting forth the circumstances when a “retail seller” is responsible for providing consumer product exposure warnings. The amendments are effective on April 1, 2020. The amendments adopted have not changed since OEHHA’s October 4, 2019, modifications. A...
This week, I sat down with my colleagues Sheryl Lindros Dolan, Chris Bryant, and Dr. Richard Engler to discuss our fabulous 2020 Forecast, B&C’s and The Acta Group’s (Acta®) richly detailed overview of key trends in U.S. and global chemical law and policy. This 67-page document provides a comprehensive “one-stop” overview of global initiatives for the New Year of which stakeholders in the global chemical market must be aware. My colleagues provide a spirited overview of key...
January 14, 2020
Lynn L. Bergeson, “EPA Revises “Working Approach” Document,” Chemical Processing, January 14, 2020.
On December 20, 2019, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released an updated “Working Approach” document that builds upon its November 2017 version. The EPA states that the updated version, “TSCA New Chemical Determinations: A Working Approach for Making Determinations under TSCA Section 5,” explains its approach for making affirmative determinations on new chemical notices under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). This article highlights key changes in the document.
Click here for a PDF brochure of the memorandum, and click here to listen to the special Forecast 2020 edition of the All Things Chemical podcast. Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) and its consulting affiliate The Acta Group (Acta®) are pleased to offer you our Forecast 2020. In this detailed and comprehensive document, the legal, scientific, and regulatory professionals of B&C and Acta distill key trends in U.S. and global chemical law and policy, and provide our...
January 3, 2020
Lynn L. Bergeson, “Risk evaluations under TSCA: The state of play,” Specialty Chemicals Magazine, December 2019/January 2020.
Among the changes when the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) was amended by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act for the 21st Century, also known as Lautenberg or ‘new TSCA’, none is more consequential than the requirement that the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) conduct risk evaluations for ‘high priority’ chemical substances. We are now three years into new TSCA and this is being done, amid spirited debate and, inevitably, litigation.
New chemical innovation is not as celebrated as innovation in electronics, materials, software, or other sectors, but it is every bit as important. Many believe, as do we, that new chemical innovation is essential to achieving sustainable development. For this reason, a close look at the 2016 amendments to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) implementation of them offers valuable insights into whether the new U.S. industrial chemical...
The citizen suit provisions of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) are turning out to be a potentially powerful tool for advocates dissatisfied with risk evaluations conducted under TSCA Section 6. What is unclear is whether anyone intended this result. This column discusses the new and somewhat surprising role TSCA Section 21 citizen petitions may play in defining chemical risks under TSCA. The issue involves an interesting TSCA Section 21 petition filed in 2016 that has been the subject of...