In March, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued its revised final Hazard Communication Standard (HCS), aligning it with the United Nations Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). Here are some key aspects of the final rule, which will be fully implemented by 2016.
After much deliberation, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced in March that it has revised the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS), aligning it with the United Nations Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). The final HCS rule, which becomes effective in May, will be implemented in various phases with full implementation by 2016.
Much may be headed our way this year from the Hill in connection with reform of the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA) and chemical initiatives advanced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP). The 2012 presidential election cycle is likely to influence any activity by either party or the administration over the next year.
Since the discovery of fullerenes in 1985, the scientific and business communities have been exploring possible commercial applications for these intriguing materials. This article will explore one such application, the use of fullerenes in skin creams. We will discuss the perceived advantages of such use, the concerns expressed regarding risks to health and the environment from fullerenes in skin cream, and the research reported to date on cosmetic usage. The article will conclude with a...
On April 26, 2012, the Obama Administration released its National Bioeconomy Blueprint, which is intended to provide a comprehensive approach to harnessing innovations in biological research to address national challenges in health, food, energy and the environment. In a related development, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) proposed on May 1, 2012, amendments to 7 C.F.R. Part 3201, Guidelines for Designating Biobased Products for Federal Procurement.
May 15, 2012
Lynn L. Bergeson, “EO Increases Procurement of Biobased Products,” Pollution Engineering, May 2012.
The BioPreferred Program was established by the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, as amended by the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008. It is intended to increase federal procurement of biobased products, promote rural economic development, create new jobs, and provide new markets for farm commodities. The USDA manages the program.
Based on written communications from the EPA’s Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics, questions have been raised as to the agency’s interpretation of the six chemical categories created under the Toxic Substances Control Act’s Section 8(b)(2) authority. Given the statements from EPA over the past several years and recognizing that reporting under the TSCA Chemical Data Reporting rule commenced Feb. 1 (and runs through June 30, 2012), a critically important question is whether chemical...
On October 31, 2011, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (CDTSC) released an “informal draft” of its Safer Consumer Products Regulations. The draft does a good job of outlining how CDTSC intends to implement key mandates contained in the state’s Green Chemistry Initiative, which directs regulators to evaluate safer alternatives to chemicals that are believed to be toxic. This “Washington Watch” column summarizes key provisions of this precedent-setting, game-changing...
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced significant new use rules (SNURs) for 17 chemical substances, including 'infused carbon nanostructures (generic)', that had been the subjects of pre-manufacture notices (PMNs). Now enshrined as part of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA),'this action requires persons who intend to manufacture, import, or process any of these 17 chemical substances for an activity that is designated as a significant new use by this rule to...
April 1, 2012
Lynn L. Bergeson, “EPA Targets Five Chemical Groups,” Chemical Processing, April, 2012.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released on March 20, 2012, proposed significant new use rules (SNUR) that would require companies to report all new uses of five groups of chemicals, including domestic and imported products and articles. This would give EPA the opportunity, if warranted, to prohibit or limit the activity. The chemicals, which were part of the EPA's Chemical Action Plans from 2009 through 2011, are polybrominated diphenylethers (PBDE), hexabromocyclododecane...
April 1, 2012
Lynn L. Bergeson, “$1.4 Million Civil Penalty for TSCA Violations,” Pollution Engineering, April 2012.
If anyone is thinking big penalties under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) are a thing of the past, think again. On Feb. 7, 2012, EPA announced that the Dover Chemical Corp. has agreed to pay a $1.4 million civil penalty for the unauthorized manufacture of chemical substances at facilities in Dover, Ohio, and Hammond, Ind. The settlement resolves alleged violations of TSCA premanufacture notice (PMN) obligations for the production of various chlorinated paraffins. According to EPA, the...
April 1, 2012
Lynn L. Bergeson, “Does the New Rule Stink? EPA Lifts Stay on Hydrogen Sulfide Reporting,” Manufacturing Today, Spring 2012.
On Oct.17, 2.011, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced its decision to lift the administrative stay of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) Section 313 toxic chemical release reporting requirements for hydrogen sulfide (H2S) (CAS No.7783 6-4). The decision, which is not without controversy, has important implications for any industry sector that emits H2S.
March 14, 2012
Lynn L. Bergeson, “EPA Fines Dover Chemical $1.4 Million,” Chemical Processing, March 14, 2012.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced that Dover Chemical Corporation has agreed to pay a $1.4-million civil penalty for alleged violations of Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) premanufacture notice (PMN) obligations for the production of various short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCP). This column explains why this enforcement action is noteworthy.
March 1, 2012
Lynn L. Bergeson, “TSCA Reform: Business Strategies in Times of Political Gridlock,” CHEManager Europe, March 2012.
Most would agree that legislative reform of the U.S. Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) is long overdue. Few agree on what to change and how best to proceed. If you throw in the 2012 presidential election, you have gridlock. Commerce marches on, however, and with the Environmental Protection Agency reinventing TSCA implementation in innovative and effective ways, Reach setting the new global tone, and California creating a new template for sustainable consumer products, TSCA reform is at risk...
On December 19, 2011, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) announced that it added 20 substances of very high concern (SVHC) to the Candidate List, which now includes 73 substances.
February 1, 2012
Lynn L. Bergeson, “NRDC Sues EPA Over Nanosilver,” Chemical Processing, February 2012.
On January 26, 2012, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for approving a pesticide product containing nanosilver under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). This article summarizes the lawsuit, explains what’s at stake, and discusses the lawsuit’s implications.
February 1, 2012
Lynn L. Bergeson, “Nanosilver Conditionally Registered as New Active Ingredient,” Pollution Engineering, February 2012.
In August 2010, EPA announced that it was considering allowing the Swiss company HeiQ Materials Ag to enter the U.S. market with a new nanosilver pesticide and textile preservative, HeiQ AGS-20. On Dec. 1, 2011, the EPA issued a conditional registration for a pesticide product.
Based on written communications from the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics, questions have been raised as to the agency’s interpretation of the six chemical categories created under Toxic Substances Control Act Section 8(b)(2) authority. Chemicals long considered part of these well-established categories identified decades ago are complex reaction products that fall under the TSCA Section 8(b)(2) category listing. Given the statements from EPA over...