The Acta Group (Acta®) and Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) are pleased to announce that Scott J. Burya, Ph.D. has joined our firms as a Regulatory Chemist. Dr. Burya holds a Ph.D. in analytical chemistry from the Ohio State University and will support clients in all stages of product development, from assessing the toxicology and regulatory profiles of new substances, performing quantitative risk assessments, and navigating state and federal regulations, to guiding teams through...
Category: General
December 8, 2017
Neste Recognized For Campaign Demonstrating Circular Economy
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On December 1, 2017, Neste, a member of BRAG, announced that its Ham Trick (Kinkkutemppu in Finnish) campaign was awarded two prestigious marketing and communications competitions. The Ham Trick, which is a campaign in which Neste collects and recycles ham waste fat from 100,000 households throughout Finland for manufacturing renewable diesel, won gold at the 2017 European Excellence Awards (EEA) and bronze in the PR category at the Eurobest awards....
December 8, 2017
EPA Issues Final 2018 RFS Requirements
By Kathleen M. Roberts On November 30, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued its final 2018 volume requirements under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program for cellulosic biofuel, biomass-based diesel, advanced biofuel, and total renewable fuel. A pre-publication of the final rule is available now. The final rule sets the annual percentage standards for cellulosic biofuel, advanced biofuel, and total renewable fuel for motor vehicle gasoline and...
December 7, 2017
Sweden Announces Product Registration Requirement for Nanomaterials
On December 5, 2017, the Swedish Chemicals Agency (KEMI) announced that it has amended the information requirements for the products register to require notifiers to provide information on nanomaterials contained in chemical products. The announcement, available in Swedish, states that the requirement will enter into force on January 1, 2018, and the first reports will be due in February 2019. According to KEMI, the purpose of the new notification...
December 7, 2017
EPA to Withdraw Direct Final Rule to Update Voluntary Consensus Standards for Composite Wood Products
On December 8, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is scheduled to publish in the Federal Register a notice that it is withdrawing its direct final rule issued on October 25, 2017, to update the voluntary consensus standards that were originally published in the Toxics Substances Control Act (TSCA) Title VI formaldehyde emission standards for composite wood products final rule on December 12, 2016. EPA issued both a direct final rule and a proposed rule...
On December 6, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it was extending the public comment period to receive information on the five persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) chemicals that are subject to Section 6(h) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) which requires EPA to take expedited regulatory action to address risks from certain PBT chemicals. Comments were initially due on December 9, 2017; they are now due on January 12, 2018. EPA...
December 6, 2017
EPA’s New Chemicals Review Program—Highlights from the December 6, 2017, Public Meeting
On December 6, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) convened a much anticipated public meeting on implementing changes to the new chemicals review program under the amended Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). EPA offered brief prepared remarks and previously solicited questions from stakeholders. Stakeholders expressed their appreciation to EPA for developing the draft Points to Consider and related documents...
December 5, 2017
RIVM Takes Critical Look at EUON
The Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) published a brochure entitled “The European Union Observatory for Nanomaterials: A step forward?” on November 30, 2017. RIVM concludes that the European Union (EU) Observatory for Nanomaterials (EUON) will have a limited contribution to reducing the uncertainty regarding the safety of nanomaterials. Although several EU Member States, including the Netherlands, supported a mandatory EU-wide registration system for...
The 2017 International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA) Annual Meeting provided information on all things safety equipment, including advocacy, policy updates and connecting with safety equipment industry colleagues. Lynn L. Bergeson, Managing Partner of Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®), and Lisa R. Burchi, of Counsel at B&C, spoke.
Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. extends its best wishes to our clients and many friends and we wish you and your family a happy, healthy, peaceful, and safe New Year. As we have for many years, the firm has made a contribution to the House of Ruth, a shelter for battered women and their children, in lieu of gifts to our clients, and on our clients’ behalf. TSCA/FIFRA Deadline Approaching For Comments On EPA’s Proposed Reporting Requirements For TSCA Mercury Inventory: As reported in...
December 1, 2017
Lynn L. Bergeson, “Resetting the TSCA Inventory: Why This Is Important,” Environmental Quality Management, Volume 27, Issue 1, Fall 2017.
On August 11, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the third Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) framework final rule in the Federal Register, the TSCA Inventory Notification (Active-Inactive) Requirements (EPA, 2017). This final rule is now in effect. This Washington Watch column explains why the rule is important, and what stakeholders should be doing to protect their interests.
December 1, 2017
Royal Dutch Shell, Bio-Bean Collaborate To Fuel London Buses
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. Royal Dutch Shell (Shell) announced a collaboration with bio-bean, a clean technology company, that will power London’s buses using a biofuel made partly from waste coffee grounds. Bio-bean collects waste coffee grounds from high street chains and factories, dries and processes the grounds, and then extracts the coffee oil, which Argent Energy, bio-bean’s fuel partner, processes into a blended B20 biofuel. The biofuel contains a 20 percent...
December 1, 2017
Neste Announces Partnership With California Fuel Distributors
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On November 22, 2017, Neste, a member of BRAG, announced exclusive partnerships with four California fuel distributors that will provide public and private fleets access to a consistent and high-quality supply of Neste MY Renewable Diesel. Through the partnerships with IPC (USA), Inc., Ramos Oil Company, Van De Pol Petroleum, and Western States Oil, Neste renewable diesel will be available to customers in Southern California, Northeast California, the...
December 1, 2017
DOE Advanced Development And Optimization Workshop
By Kathleen M. Roberts DOE’s Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) is hosting an Advanced Development and Optimization (ADO) Workshop on December 12-13, 2017, in Golden, Colorado. At the workshop, BETO intends to discuss how the new ADO program area can best serve stakeholders in developing the bioenergy industry, and to raise awareness of existing assets from past investments and discuss future needs and opportunities for maximizing these assets’ value. The ADO...
December 1, 2017
EPA Denies Industry Request To Shift Point Of Obligation
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On November 30, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a notice in the Federal Register announcing its decision to deny several petitions requesting that EPA initiate a rulemaking to change the point of obligation for compliance under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program. Under the RFS program, refiners and importers of gasoline and diesel fuel are identified as “obligated parties” responsible for compliance with the RFS...
November 30, 2017
Senate EPW Committee Approves Nomination of Andrew Wheeler for EPA Deputy Administrator
On November 29, 2017, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee approved the nomination of Andrew R. Wheeler, Esquire for U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Deputy Administrator. Mr. Wheeler currently works as a Principal at Faegre Baker Daniels Consulting providing guidance on federal regulatory and legislative environmental and energy issues. He began his environmental policy career at EPA in 1991 when he was Special Assistant to the Information Management Division...
November 29, 2017
EPA To Issue Final Determination on Whether to Revise Current Size Standards for Small Manufacturers and Processors under TSCA Section 8(a)
On November 30, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is scheduled to publish in the Federal Register a notice of its final determination on whether revision to the current size standards for small manufacturers and processors, which are used in connection with reporting regulations under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Section 8(a), is warranted. The notice states that EPA has made its final determination that revision is warranted based upon three...
On November 27, 2017, in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (Ninth Circuit) case on the petition for review of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) framework rule Procedures for Prioritization of Chemicals for Risk Evaluation (Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families v. EPA, Case Nos. 17-72260, 17-72501, and 17-72968 (consolidated)), the Ninth Circuit issued an order on several pending motions. It granted the American Chemistry Council’s (ACC) (and other industry groups) motion...
November 22, 2017
EPA Releases List of Chemical Substances Reported under TSCA Inventory Notification (Active-Inactive) Rule
On November 22, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it was releasing a preliminary list of chemical substances reported under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Inventory Notification (Active-Inactive) rule that includes substances reported to EPA through November 10, 2017, and that it will be updated approximately once per month. EPA states that it is making this list available to help keep the stakeholder community informed of the status of reporting...
November 21, 2017
EC Publishes Report on Ecosystem to Accelerate Uptake of Innovation in Materials Technology
In October 2017, the European Commission (EC) Directorate-General for Research and Innovation published a report entitled An ecosystem to accelerate the uptake of innovation in materials technology: Report by the High Level Group of EU Member States and Associated Countries on Nanosciences, Nanotechnologies and Advanced Materials. The High Level Group of European Union (EU) Member States and Associated Countries on Nanosciences, Nanotechnologies and Advanced Materials examined the barriers...