EPA Announces Environmental Justice Consultations on Risk Management Rulemakings for Methylene Chloride and 1-BP
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on November 3, 2020, that it will hold webinars to consult with environmental justice communities on risk management for methylene chloride and 1-bromopropane (1-BP). EPA states that the webinars are open to the public and will focus on the environmental justice impacts of EPA’s development of proposed rules to address the unreasonable risks identified in the final Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) risk evaluations for these chemicals. EPA will hold “identical” consultation webinars on November 16, 2020, and November 19, 2020. According to EPA, both sessions will provide an overview of the TSCA risk management requirements, the findings from the final risk evaluations for methylene chloride and 1-BP, the tools available to manage the unreasonable risks from methylene chloride and 1-BP, and discussion of environmental justice concerns. In addition to being open to the public, EPA is inviting national, local, and non-governmental organizations, communities, and other interested stakeholders to participate. EPA states that in addition to environmental justice consultations, it is executing a “robust outreach effort on risk management that includes one-on-one meetings with stakeholders and formal consultations with small businesses, state and local governments, and tribes.” EPA notes that there will also be an open public comment period on proposed risk management regulations.