Articles

On Feb. 7, 2013, EPA proposed 2013 renewable fuel standards for cellulosic biofuel, biomass-based diesel, advanced biofuel and total renewable fuels that apply to all gasoline and diesel produced or imported in year 2013. (78 Fed. Reg. 9282.) The proposal would require producers, importers and distributors of gasoline and diesel to add larger proportions of renewable fuel to their fuel products. EPA has also proposed, in a separate rulemaking signed on Jan. 31, 2013, an...

On February 21, 2013, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a landmark decision in Dow Agrosciences v. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). It set aside a Biological Opinion (BiOp) prepared by the NMFS that found use of pesticides chlorpyrifos, diazinon, and malathion could jeopardize certain species of salmon and their habitat. The decision will have significant implications for the government and pesticide registrants alike. Here’s why....

On Dec. 20, 2012, EPA issued a much-anticipated rulemaking package revising the emission standards for commercial and industrial solid waste incineration units (CISWI). The final rule accomplishes two broad goals: it revises the Clean Air Act (CAA) emission limits for CISWIs, and it revises the definition under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of nonhazardous secondary material (NHSM). This column discusses the CAA aspects of the rule. More information regarding the adjustments for...

On February 21, 2013, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed a new approach to assure compliance with renewable fuel volume standards and minimize fraud. The proposal offers an alternative voluntary quality assurance program (QAP) to combat fraudulently procured Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs), which have been the source of problems in the past. Comments on the proposal are due April 18, 2013. This column explains the proposal and why a new option is needed....

On March 11, 2013, at the annual meeting of the Society of Toxicology, researchers from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) reported preliminary findings from a new laboratory study in which mice were exposed by inhalation to multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT)....

On February 21, 2013, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed a new approach to assure compliance with renewable fuel volume standards and minimize fraud. The proposal offers an alternative voluntary quality assurance program (QAP) to combat fraudulently procured Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs), which have been the source of problems in the past. Comments on the proposal are due April 18, 2013. This column explains the proposal and why a new option is needed....

The U.S. EPA announced on January 4, 2013, the first draft risk assessments developed under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Work Plan. This is an important development of which PE readers should be familiar....

Manufacturers working with nanoscale materials will be pleased to know that the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently published a fact sheet entitled “Working Safely with Nanomaterials“. This document is a welcome addition to the widely available literature on managing prudently workplace exposures to nanomaterials....

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) resources are not expected to be robust. This will translate to further reductions in its operating programs such as the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP), and eventually (if not already) will translate into personnel, skills-mix and salary impacts. This will hinder the ability of both OCSPP programs – Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) and Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) – to review submissions in...

On November 27, 2012, EPA released The EDSP Universe of Chemicals and General Validation Principles, as well as the list of approximately 10,000 chemicals. This article explains the document and its implications....