Category: General

April 26, 2018

NACD Washington Fly-In, April 25-26, 2018, Arlington, Virginia

The NACD Washington Fly-In brought chemical distributors and their supply chain partners from around the country to meet with their elected officials in Washington, DC to educate Members of Congress and push for important policy goals. Meeting face-to-face with legislators is the most effective way to get your message heard on Capitol Hill. Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®), was a proud sponsor. 
April 26, 2018

REACH Committee Approves Draft Regulation to Amend the REACH Annexes to Address Nanomaterials

The European Commission (EC) Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) Committee voted on April 26, 2018, to amend several REACH Annexes to clarify the registration requirements for nanomaterials.  According to the European Chemicals Agency’s (ECHA) press release, the amendments address the knowledge gap regarding which substances registered under REACH are placed on the market as nanomaterials and in what quantities.  ECHA states that the...
April 26, 2018

Administrator Pruitt’s Testimony at Budget Hearing Addresses Science Rule and Ethics Issues

On April 26, 2018, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt was grilled by Members of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Environment at a hearing titled The Fiscal Year 2019 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Budget.  The budget was plainly not the primary topic as the House Committee Members covered a lot of ground.  Pruitt fielded many questions and comments from House Democrats on his alleged...
April 25, 2018

Society for Chemical Hazard Communication (SCHC) Spring 2018 Meeting, April 21-25, 2018, Orlando, Florida

The SCHC Spring 2018 Meeting included professional development courses, a board meeting open to all members, and a general meeting with poster session. Michael S. Wenk, M.S., Senior Regulatory Consultant with Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®), presented on the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS) in Central America and Mexico.
April 25, 2018

European Parliament Approves New Law on Organic Production and Labeling of Organic Products

On April 19, 2018, the European Parliament (EP) approved a regulation on organic production and labeling of organic products.  Under the regulation, the production of processed organic food will be based on several specific principles, including the exclusion of food containing or consisting of engineered nanomaterials.  The regulation defines engineered nanomaterial as defined in the 2011 regulation on the provision of food information to consumers as amended in 2015 by...
April 25, 2018

ACS GCI Announces Opening of 2018 Green Chemistry Challenge Awards; EPA Announces Opening of 2018 Safer Choice Partner of the Year Awards

We are pleased to report that on April 20, 2018, the American Chemical Society (ACS) Green Chemistry Institute (GCI) announced the opening of the 2018 Green Chemistry Challenge Awards.  Readers will recall that funding for this essential program was zeroed out in the last several budget proposals advanced by the Trump Administration.  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) enacted budget apparently includes the resources to continue to support the Green Chemistry Challenge...
April 25, 2018

EPA to Present TSCA Inventory Notification Webinar

On April 24, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it would be presenting a webinar to assist processors with reporting under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Inventory Notification (Active-Inactive) Rule, published in the Federal Register on August 11, 2017.  This webinar, scheduled for May 23, 2018, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. (EDT) will “include an overview of reporting requirements for processors, a demonstration of the electronic...
April 24, 2018

2018 RCC Stakeholder Event to Be Held on June 4-5, 2018, in Washington, D.C.

On April 24, 2018, the U.S. - Canada Regulatory Cooperation Council (RCC) Stakeholder Group announced that a 2018 RCC Stakeholder Event will be held on; June 4-5, 2018, in Washington, D.C. to “bring together senior regulatory officials, industry, and other members of the public on both sides of the border to provide progress reports on existing RCC work plans and to discuss new opportunities for regulatory cooperation.” The announcement states that details regarding the 2018 RCC Stakeholder...
April 23, 2018

EFSA Consumer Survey about Emerging Food Safety Issues Includes Nanoparticles

On April 16, 2018, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published a report entitled “EU Insights — Consumer perceptions of emerging risks in the food chain.”  To understand better the views of European Union (EU) consumers on food-related emerging risks, EFSA surveyed 25 EU countries using three examples of emerging risks:  green smoothies, plastic rice, and nanoparticles.  According to the report, the study found that consumers tended to be more concerned about...
April 23, 2018

EPA Sends Rulemakings on Science Policy and the Rulemaking Process to OMB

On April 19, 2018, the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) received the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed rule entitled “Strengthening Transparency and Validity in Regulatory Science.”  This new proposed rule, item 2080-AA14, has not been published in the regulatory agenda; the only information available concerning the content of this rule is its title.  On April 11, 2018, OIRA received an advanced...