Memoranda

On September 14, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a pre-publication version of a final rule establishing the procedures and requirements for how EPA will manage the issuance of guidance documents consistent with Executive Order (EO) 13891, “Promoting the Rule of Law Through Improved Agency Guidance Documents.” The final regulation provides a definition of guidance document for the purposes of this rule, establishes general requirements and procedures...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP) will be reorganizing at the end of September 2020. OCSPP currently consists of the Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), the Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP), and the Office of Science Coordination and Policy (OSCP). According to reporting in Bloomberg Environmental, EPA is reorganizing within OPPT and OPP, as well as reorganizing at the OCSPP level. EPA has recently...

On September 4, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published two Federal Register notices regarding the risk evaluations for the 20 high-priority chemicals designated in December 2019. In the first notice, EPA announced the availability of the final scope documents for the risk evaluations to be conducted under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for the 20 high-priority substances. 85 Fed. Reg. 55281. The scope document for each chemical substance includes...

On August 24, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the issuance of a Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) Section 18 emergency exemption to the state of Texas permitting it to allow American Airlines and Total Orthopedics Sports & Spine to use a new product that is believed to inactivate coronaviruses like the SARS-CoV-2 virus on surfaces for up to seven days.  EPA states that after carefully reviewing the available data and...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) held a forum on its Agriculture Innovation Agenda (AIA) on August 16, 2020. The forum focused on science-informed policies and programs from government agencies with the shared aim of supporting environmentalism and enhanced productivity. AIA seeks to spur developments in biotechnology and support accessibility in response to modern industry challenges. Stakeholders were given a chance to hear from representatives and participate in a question and answer...

On August 20, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it is seeking to add chitosan to the list of active ingredients allowed for in minimum risk pesticides exempted from pesticide registration requirements under Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) Section 25(b).  A minimum risk product must meet six specific conditions to be exempted from pesticide registration.  One of those conditions is that the active ingredient in the minimum...

The Chinese Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE), formerly the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP), issued the “Measures on the Environmental Management of New Chemical Substances” (MEE Order No. 12) on April 29, 2020, which will replace the current MEP Order No. 7 on January 1, 2021. To implement MEE Order No. 12, the MEE released the “Guidance for Environmental Management Registration of New Chemical Substances (Draft for Consultation)” (Draft Guidance) on August 17,...

On August 11, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the final risk evaluation for 1-bromopropane (1-BP). After evaluating 25 conditions of use, EPA determined that 16 present an unreasonable risk to workers, occupational non-users (ONU), consumers, and bystanders. EPA found no unreasonable risk to the environment from any conditions of use and no unreasonable risks to the general population. According to EPA, the next step in the process required by the Toxic Substances...

Federal U.S. Senators Vote Against Deputy Secretary Of Energy Nominee On August 4, 2020, U.S. Senators Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) voted against Mark Menezes, who is nominated to become Deputy Secretary of Energy. In a statement, both Senators said that “[g]iven the uncertainty with the ‘gap year’ small refinery waivers, the wasted time and resources to score the waivers again, the lack of transparency in the entire process, and most importantly, the toll...

On July 30, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it approved amended labels for 13 products based on laboratory testing that shows the products are effective against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. These products, and two previously announced products (see our July 7, 2020, blog), are the only products for which EPA has reviewed laboratory testing data and approved label claims specifically against SARS-CoV-2.  In January 2020, at the...