Nano and Other Emerging Chemical Technologies Blog

Registration is now open for the June 6-7, 2016, U.S.-European Union (EU) “Bridging NanoEHS Research Efforts” joint workshop.  The workshop will bring together the U.S.-EU Communities of Research (COR), which serve as a platform for U.S. and EU scientists to share information on nanotechnology environmental, health, and safety (nanoEHS) research.  The goal of the workshop is to publicize progress towards COR goals and objectives, clarify and communicate future plans, share best...

On April 18, 2016, the Silver Nanotechnology Working Group (SNWG) submitted comments on the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health’s (NIOSH) draft NIOSH Current Intelligence Bulletin:  Health Effects of Occupational Exposure to Silver Nanomaterials.  The draft Current Intelligence Bulletin (CIB) includes a review and assessment of the currently available scientific literature on the toxicological effects of exposure to silver nanoparticles in...

On April 13, 2016, the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), the European Environmental Citizens’ Organization for Standardization (ECOS), and the Oeko-Institut issued a press release announcing the availability of the Declaration on Waste Containing Nanomaterials.  According to the press release, over 80 signatories have endorsed the Declaration, “demonstrating overwhelming support for the demand to categorize waste containing manufactured nanomaterials as...

The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) posted on April 11, 2016, a blog item, authored by Lloyd Whitman, OSTP, and Dr. Treye Thomas, Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), entitled “Supporting Responsible Development of Nanotechnology.”  The item states that the following reports released in March 2016 highlight federal investments and activities in the area of nanotechnology environmental, health, and safety (nanoEHS) research, progress, and needs in understanding...

The European Commission (EC) Joint Research Center (JRC) recently published a report entitled NANoREG harmonised terminology for environmental health and safety assessment of nanomaterials, developed within the NANoREG project:  “A common European approach to the regulatory testing of nanomaterials.”  The report states that it represents the project’s attempt at bringing common understanding and consistency in the use of key terms in the environmental health and safety (EHS) assessment...

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development recently posted a March 29, 2016, report entitled Developments in Delegations on the Safety of Manufactured Nanomaterials — Tour de Table.  The report compiles information, provided by Working Party on Manufactured Nanomaterials (WPMN) participating delegations, before and after the November 2015 WPMN meeting, on current developments on the safety of manufactured nanomaterials.  OECD intends the report to provide delegations with...

On March 31, 2016, the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) published its supplement to the President’s 2017 budget request.  The supplement also serves as the NNI annual report called for under the provisions of the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 2003.  NNI states that the President’s budget request provides $1.4 billion for NNI, with a cumulative total of nearly $24 billion since the inception of NNI in 2001 (including the 2017 request), “affirming...

On April 4, 2016, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a report entitled Building a Safety Program to Protect the Nanotechnology Workforce: A Guide for Small to Medium-Sized Enterprises. The report states that employees may be at risk of exposure by inhalation, skin absorption, or ingestion. According to the report, several factors can affect their potential for exposure, including: The route, concentration, duration, and frequency of any exposure; The...

On March 28, 2016, the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) announced the release of a report entitled Quantifying Exposure to Engineered Nanomaterials (QEEN) from Manufactured Products:  Addressing Environmental, Health, and Safety Implications.  The report summarizes the July 7-8, 2015, QEEN workshop, which was sponsored by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and co-hosted by the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI).  The main goals for...

The National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) issued a March 23, 2016, press release concerning the launch of a Nanotechnology Signature Initiative (NSI), Water Sustainability through Nanotechnology:  Nanoscale Solutions for a Global-Scale Challenge.  The Office of Science and Technology posted a blog item on March 23, 2016, concerning the new NSI, stating that it is intended “to take advantage of the unique properties of engineered nanomaterials to generate...

The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) announced on March 23, 2016, a new publication co-authored with the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) and Joint Research Center (JRC) that illustrates how to use data for different nanoforms within the same substance registration.  According to ECHA, this approach “will form a cornerstone in the future guidance development on hazard assessment for nanoforms” at the European Union (EU) and Organization for Economic...

The National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) published a Federal Register notice on March 14, 2016, announcing the following events in support of the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI): The “2016 NNI Strategic Planning Stakeholder Workshop,” which will be held May 19-20, 2016. NNCO expects to obtain input from individual stakeholders that it may use to inform the development of the NNI Strategic Plan.  Representatives of the U.S. research community,...

The February 24, 2016, Official Journal of the European Union includes the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) on “Nanotechnology for a competitive chemical industry.”  The opinion addresses nanotechnology in an innovative Europe; nanotechnology in the chemical industry and medicine; nanotechnology as an economic component; nanotechnology as an environmental component; nanotechnology as an employment/social component; opportunities and risks associated...

On March 8, 2016, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) filed its brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit responding to two petitions for review of its conditional registration of a nanosilver pesticide product. NRDC v. EPA, No. 15-72308. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), as well as the Center for Food Safety (CFS) and International Center for Technology Assessment (ICTA), filed suit, asking the court to set aside EPA’s final order granting...

The Ministry for the Environment, Energy, and the Sea has posted a report, available only in French, entitled Éléments issus des déclarations des substances à l’état nanoparticulaire:  Rapport d’etude 2015.  The report analyzes nanomaterial registrations received in 2015 for reporting year 2014.  Under Decree No. 2012-232, companies that manufacture, import, and/or distribute a “substance with nanoparticle status” in an amount of at least 100 grams per year must submit an annual...

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) recently published the following reports: Physical-chemical properties of nanomaterials: Evaluation of methods applied in the OECD-WPMN testing programme: The Netherlands volunteered to lead an initial detailed evaluation of the applicability of the test methods applied to determine the physico-chemical properties of different types of nanomaterials in the Testing Program.  The evaluated dossiers include information on...

On February 16, 2016, the Danish Environmental Protection Agency (Danish EPA) posted a report entitled Assessment of Nano-enabled Technologies in Cosmetics.  The report reviews the available literature on nano-enabled technologies for cosmetic products, specifically addressing soluble nano-transporters.  Accompanying the report is an appraised database summarizing the literature that formed the basis of the review.  The database addresses the following areas:  types and...

According to a February 22, 2016, press release from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), an OECD report states that “[u]rgent research is needed to assess the possible risks to human health and ecosystems from the ever-increasing amounts of engineered nanomaterials going into household waste and ending up in the environment.”  The OECD report, Nanomaterials in Waste Streams:  Current Knowledge on Risks and Impacts, states that engineered...

On January 25, 2016, the Netherlands National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) published a report that describes the content of a computer program that can be used for a risk assessment.  According to RIVM, the NanoCosmetics tool will need to cover all aspects of the risk assessment, including:  the physicochemical characterization of the nanomaterials; the estimation of the consumer exposure; the possible hazards (toxicity) induced by the nanomaterials; and the risk...

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has begun a public consultation on its draft guidance on the preparation and presentation of an application for authorization of a novel food. As reported in our December 22, 2015, blog item, the European Commission (EC) promulgated a final novel foods regulation in December 2015. Under the regulation, food consisting of engineered nanomaterials should be considered a novel food. EFSA intends the draft document to provide guidance on the data needed...