Articles

Canada recently joined a growing list of countries requiring the reporting of certain information on the manufacture, import and use of specific per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). On July 27, 2024, Canada’s Minister of the Environment published a Canada Gazette notice announcing a mandatory survey to obtain information on 312 listed PFAS. Canada’s “Guidance manual for responding to the: Notice with respect to certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)” states that...

On 13 July 2021, Maine became the first state in the US to enact extended producer responsibility (EPR) legislation for packaging. Quickly thereafter, on 6 August, Oregon became the second state to enact a similar EPR law applicable to packaging. Other states are poised to enact similar legislation, following trends more mature in the European Union (EU) and elsewhere around the world....

Two developments in the European Union in 2020 involving chemical regulations will almost certainly impact U.S. chemical stakeholders, according to Lynn L. Bergeson, managing partner of Bergeson & Campbell P.C. One initiative restricts certain chemicals in order to comply with the European Green Deal, while the other amends chemical disclosure requirements, she explains....

Manufacturers and importers should weigh in on China’s planned changes to registration requirements for new chemical substances, write Brian Xu and Jane Vergnes of The Acta Group, and Carla Hutton of Bergeson & Campbell....

The registration deadlines for pre-registered “phase-in” chemical substances under the European Union’s (EU) Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation presented for the chemicals industry a wide range of demanding tasks requiring substantial expertise from scientists, consultants, lawyers, and others. The transitional phase of REACH ended on 31 May 2018, and companies of all shapes and sizes are now engaged in a wide range of ongoing compliance...

Global chemical substance notification deadlines continue to populate the regulatory horizon. For companies active in worldwide markets, it’s crucial to review and meet all important notification and registration deadlines in each country. This article focuses on South Korea’s policy and explains why it’s essential to meet these deadlines....

While the intention of food contact regulations in both China and the US is to protect public health, the approaches taken, the obligations for industry and other facets of the regulations differ in notable ways. This article overviews the two regulatory systems, highlighting key similarities and differences between the emerging regulatory regime in China and the established US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) food contact regulations. ...

On 23 June 2016, more than 30 million people voted in a referendum to decide whether the United Kingdom (UK) should ‘Leave’ or ‘Remain’ in the European Union (EU). The referendum turnout was 71.8 per cent and the Leave campaign won by 52 per cent to 48 per cent, making ‘Brexit’ an important and imminent probability, with potentially substantial implications for a range of stakeholders, including the chemicals industry. Between then and now, there have...

On June 22, 2016, President Obama signed into law the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg). The new law amended significantly the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and in so doing, is redefining supply chain relationships, rewriting the rules of engagement for due diligence in mergers and acquisitions, reopening debate on new avenues in product liability and tort law, and raising important questions regarding right-to-know vs. confidential business...

Two workshops, a European Union (EU)-U.S. Nano Environmental and Health Safety (NanoEHS) workshop and a nano modeling workshop, will be held in advance of the October 2016 OpenTox Euro Conference....

On July 27, 2016, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) and Health Canada (HC) began a consultation on a proposed prioritization approach for nanoscale forms of substances on the Domestic Substances List (DSL)....

The European Commission (EC) published on July 14, 2016, a regulation in the Official Journal of the European Union that amends Annex VI, the list of ultraviolet (UV) filters allowed in cosmetic products, of the cosmetics regulation....

On June 29, 2016, the European Commission (EC) provided a notice to the European Parliament regarding its response to a 2014 petition calling for a European Union (EU)-wide ban on microplastics and nanoparticles. The petition summary states: “Nanoparticles are so small that they penetrate cells effortlessly and can damage them, causing cancer. Because the precautionary principle applies in the EU, the petitioner urges a ban on these small particles as soon as possible.”...

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) prepared a June 28, 2016, report, Nanotechnology: A Policy Primer. The report provides an overview of federal research and development (R&D) in nanotechnology, U.S. competitiveness in the field, environmental, health, and safety (EHS) concerns, nanomanufacturing, and public understanding of and attitudes toward nanotechnology. According to the report, while more than 60 nations established similar programs after the launch of the National...

On May 3, 3016, Mexico’s Ministry of Economy published a notice beginning a public consultation on two draft nanotechnology standards. ISO/TS 80004-5:2011 lists terms and definitions related to the interface between nanomaterials and biology. It is intended to facilitate communications between scientists, engineers, technologists, designers, manufacturers, regulators, non-governmental organizations (NGO), consumer organizations, members of the public, and others....

Registration is now open for the June 6-7, 2016, U.S.-European Union (EU) “Bridging NanoEHS Research Efforts” joint workshop. See https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1-wZatJVQ3b9LSx9rrJeeEZqFO-8DZVs-80txK-9DBmQ/viewform and http://us-eu.org/2016%20-us-eu-nanoehs-workshop/ The workshop will bring together the U.S.-EU Communities of Research (COR), which serve as a platform for U.S. and EU scientists to share information on nanotechnology environmental, health, and...

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.”...

PUBLIC CONCERNS LEAD TO CHEMICAL LAW In the 1960s and early to mid-1970s, new reports of chemicals causing cancer appeared in the press or on TV almost every month. Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), used in electrical transformers for over 40 years, were being found in fish and environmental samples from around the country. Other chemicals, including those not thought to be harmful, caused serious health or environmental effects. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) were depleting the earth’s protective...

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As all chemical companies doing business in the European Union (EU) should know, the “A” in REACH stands for Authorisation, the last of the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) processes to be implemented since the regulation entered into force in 2008. This article reviews the path to Authorisation and reports on key developments shared during the “Lessons Learnt on Applications for Authorisation” ECHA conference held 11 February,...

On January 28, 2015, Environment Canada announced that, with Health Canada, it has initiated a review of significant new activity (SNAc) orders and notices currently in place under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA). See http://www.chemicalsubstanceschimiques.gc.ca/plan/approach-approche/snac-nac/index-eng.php#a2 According to Environment Canada, since publication of the first SNAc in 2001, policies and practices have evolved, particularly with respect to the nature and scope of...

Canada announced on January 9, 2015, that the New Substances Program has published six new risk assessment summaries for chemicals and polymers, including a summary for multi-wall carbon nanotubes. See http://www.ec.gc.ca/subsnouvelles-newsubs/default.asp?lang=En&n=4BCC7425-1 Environment Canada and Health Canada conduct risk assessments on new substances. These assessments include consideration of information on physical and chemical properties, hazards, uses, and exposure to...

The European Parliament (EP) Committee on Environment, Public Health, and Food Safety (ENVI) has posted a study entitled ENVI Relevant Legislative Areas of the EU-US Trade and Investment Partnership Negotiations (TTIP). See http://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=IPOL_STU(2014)536293. The study analyzes the main differences between European Union (EU) and U.S. legislation in eight areas: human medicines and medical devices; cosmetics; food and nutrition; sanitary...

On August 9, 2014, Canada published a proposal for adopting the Globally Harmonized System for Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). GHS compliance is a big issue for just about all manufacturers, and understanding the approach of our neighbor to the north is important. This column summarizes the highlights....

The European Union Biocidal Products Regulation dramatically changes the way biocidal active substances and biocidal products are regulated under European law. This new regulatory system is subtly different from those in other jurisdictions and EU neighboring countries, and fundamentally redefines biocidal products and treated articles. Companies exporting to the EU as a component of their global business must ensure that their supply chains and product designs are compliant with the regulation....

Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) announced in October 2013 a voluntary guidance document on measuring airborne carbon nanotubes (CNT) in workplaces....

The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) published a notice in the July 30, 2013, Federal Register announcing that, following receipt of a letter from the United States Trade Representative (USTR), it instituted investigation No. 332-541, “Trade Barriers that U.S. Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Perceive as Affecting Exports to the European Union.”...

As with many countries, Korea is pursuing a chemicals management approach that ensures substances being placed on its market are assessed for risk potential based on its use patterns while placing the burden of safe use on chemical businesses....

On April 11-12, 2013, the Netherlands Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment hosted an invitation-only conference entitled “Building Blocks for Completing EU Regulation of Nanomaterials.” The conference was intended to identify areas where current European Union (EU) legislation on nanomaterials is insufficient. Participants included representatives from Member States, the European Commission (EC), European Parliament (EP), industry, and a number of non-governmental...

The European Union in recent years has promulgated new regulations to set forth the procedures by which pesticides (called biocides and plant protectants in the EU) are registered and how companies can address issues related to the citation and compensation of data submitted that support those pesticide registrations. Canada also recently issued regulations setting forth new requirements on how data used to support a pesticide registration are protected. This article provides a broad overview of...

It is entirely appropriate to consider how REACH may influence reconsideration of the U.S. chemical regulatory environment, and the report provides some critical insights. But REACH is not the only consideration — Canada’s Chemical Management Plan should be considered as well. Further, REACH should be considered from a practitioner’s, not an academic’s, perspective to learn lessons relevant to U.S. chemicals management ...

The European Union’s REACH regulation is a complex chemical management regulation intended to replace approximately 40 previously existing legal instruments with a single EU regulatory scheme for all chemical substances (both new and existing substances). It also creates a data compensation scheme for entities that must rely upon studies another entity generated to complete their registration for a particular chemical substance. This article provides background on REACH registration, data...

Several types of nanoscale materials recently dodged a bullet as the European Parliament declined to ban nanosilver and long multi-walled carbon nanotubes in the European Union’s Directive on the Restriction and Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment, (more commonly known as “RoHS”). For reasons not entirely clear, detractors of these nanoscale materials tried, and failed, to ban them outright in the RoHS Recast initiative. For nano stakeholders, while...

The National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) held a joint workshop in Washington, D.C., entitled ‘US-EU Bridging Nano EHS Research Efforts’ (10th – 11th March 2011). The workshop was intended to continue the robust dialogue between the United States (US) and European Union (EU) on issues of shared concern pertinent to nanotechnology research initiatives....

The United Nations’ Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM) urges each nation to make efforts to reduce hazards associated with the use of chemicals. In response to this request, South Korea recently has taken steps to implement a process for the management of chemicals with the objective of minimizing the harmful effects that substances have on human health and the environment....

In December 2008, Turkey enacted the Inventory and Control of Chemicals Regulation, a scaled-down version of the European Union’s REACH regulation to establish an inventory of chemicals produced and imported into Turkey and to better control potential risks posed by those chemical substances. Adoption of the regulation is one of many steps Turkey is required to take to secure membership in the European Union. The authors of this article advise chemical manufacturers and importers to...