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...
March 23, 2016
NNCO Announces Workshops and Webinar in Support of the NNI
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,...
March 16, 2016
European Economic and Social Committee Publishes Opinion on Nanotechnology for a Competitive Chemical Industry
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...
March 11, 2016
EPA Defends Conditional Nanosilver Registration
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...
March 2, 2016
OECD Publishes Reports on Physical-Chemical Properties and Categorization of Nanomaterials
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...
February 26, 2016
Danish EPA Assesses Nano-Enabled Technologies in Cosmetics
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...
February 25, 2016
OECD Claims Urgent Research Needed into Risks from Nanomaterials in Household Waste
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...
February 19, 2016
EFSA Begins Public Consultation on Draft Guidance on the Preparation and Presentation of an Application for Authorization of a Novel Food
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...