The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a Federal Register notice on May 16, 2017, announcing the availability of and requesting public comment on a draft guidance document entitled “Guidance on EPA’s Section 8(a) Information Gathering Rule on Nanomaterials in Commerce.” 82 Fed. Reg. 22452. The promised guidance provides answers to questions EPA has received from manufacturers (includes importers) and processors of certain chemical substances when they are...
Category: General
May 16, 2017
ECHA Creates Web Page for Nanomaterials Expert Group
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has created a web page for the Nanomaterials Expert Group (NMEP), which was created in October 2012. NMEP aims to seek common ground among experts on scientific and technical issues regarding the implementation of the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation, the Classification, Labeling, and Packaging (CLP) regulation, and the Biocidal Products Regulation (BPR) for nanomaterials. ECHA...
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is scheduled to publish a Federal Register notice on May 16, 2017, announcing the availability of and requesting public comment on a draft guidance document entitled “Guidance on EPA’s Section 8(a) Information Gathering Rule on Nanomaterials in Commerce.” EPA states in the pre-publication notice that the guidance provides answers to questions EPA has received from manufacturers (includes importers) and processors...
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published on May 12, 2017, a Federal Register notice delaying the effective date of the January 12, 2017, rule concerning Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Section 8(a) reporting requirements from May 12, 2017, to August 14, 2017. EPA notes that Section 553(b)(1)(B) of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) allows EPA to take action without providing an opportunity for notice or comment when it for good cause finds...
By Kathleen M. Roberts On May 1, 2017, DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) published a notice in the Federal Register regarding its intent to extend its use of the EERE Environmental Questionnaire, with changes, for three years. The questionnaire allows EERE to collect project-specific information from federal financial assistance awardees to evaluate the potential environmental impact of projects that it is considering for funding, pursuant to the...
May 12, 2017
EIA Publishes February Biodiesel Production Report
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On April 28, 2017, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) released its monthly biodiesel production report for February 2017. According to the report, U.S. biodiesel production increased by one million gallons between January and February of this year but production is 11 million gallons less than February 2016. Production came from 95 biodiesel plants with capacity of 2.3 billion gallons per year. The report also states that 37 million...
By Lauren M. Graham, Ph.D. On May 5, 2017, Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) introduced to the Senate Finance Committee legislation focused on reducing carbon pollution over the next decade by incentivizing clean energy and promoting new technologies in the private sector. The Clean Energy for America Act, which was co-sponsored by 21 Democratic Senators, provides a simplified set of long-term, performance-based energy tax incentives to promote clean energy production and storage. The...
May 11, 2017
NanoImpact Publishes Special Issue Based on Eighth International Congress of Nanotoxicology
NanoImpact has published a special issue based on work presented at the Eighth International Congress of Nanotoxicology, which was held June 2-4, 2016, in Boston, Massachusetts. The theme was “A Decade of Nanotoxicology: Impact on Human Health and the Environment.” The Editorial by the associate guest editors, Dhimiter Bello and David T. Leong, states that the special issue brings together a collection of 12 original research papers and three review...
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is scheduled to publish on May 12, 2017, a Federal Register notice delaying the effective date of the January 12, 2017, rule concerning Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Section 8(a) reporting requirements from May 12, 2017, to August 14, 2017. EPA notes that Section 553(b)(1)(B) of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) allows EPA to take action without providing an opportunity for notice or comment when it for...
On May 9, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published in the Federal Register a notice stating that it was reopening the comment period regarding 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. 82 Fed. Reg. 21542. EPA is opening the comment period for another 15 days, until May 24,...