All Knowledge & Insights By Date

On November 15, 2021, President Biden signed into law the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (H.R. 3684). The House passed the bill on November 5, 2021, by a vote of 228 to 206, and the Senate passed the bill on August 10, 2021, by a vote of 69 to 30. The bill provides a $1.2-trillion infusion of cash into the economy and contains many provisions important to the chemical processing sector. Highlighted below are some of the provisions in the 1,039-page bill that readers may find interesting.

On December 13, 2021, Richard E. Engler, Ph.D., Director of Chemistry, Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) was quoted by Bloomberg Law regarding a substantial decrease in chemical data being posted to the ChemView database by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) due to resource constraints. This information is used by the public, industry, and environmental groups to easily access health and safety information for hundreds of chemicals. Businesses might need the...

On December 13, 2021, Richard E. Engler, Ph.D., Director of Chemistry, Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) was quoted by Bloomberg Law regarding a substantial decrease in chemical data being posted to the ChemView database by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) due to resource constraints. This information is used by the public, industry, and environmental groups to easily access health and safety information for hundreds of chemicals. Businesses might need the...

On December 8, 2021, President Joseph Biden signed an Executive Order (EO) on Catalyzing Clean Energy Industries and Jobs Through Federal Sustainability. The EO calls for the federal government to achieve a carbon pollution-free electricity sector by 2035 and net-zero emissions economy-wide by no later than 2050. Using a whole-of-government approach, the federal government “will demonstrate how innovation and environmental stewardship can protect our planet, safeguard Federal investments...

On December 2, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published an updated New Approach Methods (NAM) Work Plan (Updated Work Plan). EPA created the work plan to prioritize its efforts and resources toward activities that aim to reduce the use of vertebrate animal testing while continuing to protect human health and the environment. EPA describes its updated roadmap and identifies steps intended to reduce the use of vertebrate animals for toxicity testing and related research...

Download transcript This week I was delighted to sit down with Dr. Michal I. Freedhoff, Assistant Administrator, Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), arguably the busiest person in Washington, D.C. Dr. Freedhoff is EPA’s top Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) official, and she also administers the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). Dr. Freedhoff discusses OCSPP’s priorities, plans for the new...

The environmental impacts of the digital economy are increasingly the focus of attention and concern. There is no question the demand for electricity, water and land have increased sharply in response to the growth in digital activity. Identifying, quantifying and mitigating environmental and ecological impacts are core to value creation, and investors must be mindful of how a company is positioned to create value while avoiding public rebuke for neglecting to account for the environmental...

On December 7, 2021, the House Science, Space, and Technology Subcommittees on Environment and on Research and Technology held a joint hearing entitled “Forever Chemicals: Research and Development for Addressing the PFAS Problem.” Four witnesses spoke before the subcommittees on their respective knowledge of the current state of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and where each felt future actions should be focused: Dr. Elsie Sunderland, Gordon McKay Professor of...

On November 18, 2021, the United Farm Workers and several other non-governmental organizations (NGO) filed a petition with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to revoke all food tolerances and cancel registrations for organophosphate (OP) pesticides (Petition). The Petition was filed pursuant to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), 21 U.S.C. Section 346a(d), the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. Section 551, and the First Amendment Constitutional Right to...