Registration is open for the U.S. National Nanotechnology Initiative’s (NNI) March 23, 2021, webinar on “What We Know About NanoEHS: Human Exposure.” The webinar will feature experts from diverse disciplines to share their perspectives on key findings in quantifying and assessing the effects of human exposure to nanomaterials. Keana Scott, Ph.D., Physical Scientist, Materials Measurement Science Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology...
March 3, 2021
GAO Reports that EPA’s Process for Assessing and Controlling Toxic Chemicals Has Regressed
On March 2, 2021, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) published its latest High Risk List, which includes 36 areas across the federal government vulnerable to waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement or needing broad-based transformation. According to GAO, five areas have regressed since 2019, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) process for assessing and controlling toxic chemicals. GAO’s report, High-Risk Series: Dedicated Leadership Needed to Address...
March 3, 2021
NIEHS-Funded Study Finds Graphene Nanochannel Filters Hold Promise for Contaminant Clean-Up
The March 2021 issue of Environmental Factor, a monthly newsletter published by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), includes an item entitled “New graphene nanochannel filters hold promise for contaminant clean-up.” According to the item, an NIEHS-funded study found a new strategy to design nanomaterials to filter contaminants better from water. To improve the usefulness of graphene oxide nanosheets for filtering contaminants from liquid, the...
On March 1, 2021, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) publicly released a report entitled Man-Made Chemicals and Potential Health Risks: EPA Has Completed Some Regulatory-Related Actions for PFAS. GAO was asked to examine the status of regulatory-related actions in EPA’s 2019 Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Action Plan. GAO found that EPA completed three of six selected regulatory-related actions for addressing PFAS outlined in the PFAS...
Product Stewardship And The Pandemic: Surviving And Thriving In Disruptive Times, March 31, 2021, 1:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. EDT, Via Webinar: The COVID-19 global pandemic has had far-reaching impacts on business operations. To strengthen organizational resilience going forward, we must examine lessons learned and position product stewardship as a key player in business continuity and crisis management.This future-focused webinar hosted by the Product Stewardship...
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has begun a public consultation on a derogation to the exclusion criteria for creosote for product type 8 (PT 8; wood preservatives). Under the European Union (EU) Biocidal Products Regulation (BPR), active substances that meet the exclusion criteria can be approved or renewed only if they meet one or more of the following derogation criteria: exposure is negligible; the active substance is essential to prevent a serious danger to human or animal...
On February 5, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it is reviewing actions issued under the previous Administration and will take any needed steps to ensure that they protect human health and the environment. The announcement included an update on the following chemical safety actions that have immediate or near-term effective dates or other steps associated with them. According to the announcement, these actions, along with other chemical safety...
The Verband der Mineralfarbenindustrie e. V. (VdMi), which represents German manufacturers of inorganic, organic, and metallic pigments, fillers, carbon black, ceramic and glass colors, food colorants, artists’ and school paints, masterbatches, and products for applied photocatalysis, has published a “Comparative Compilation of relevant nano definitions in different regulations and their corresponding consequences.” The compilation notes that pigments and fillers often fall under the...
February 26, 2021
All Things Chemical™ Podcast Celebrates Its 50th Fascinating Episode
Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.’s (B&C®) podcast All Things Chemical reached the big 5 – 0 this month, with the release of episodes 49 and 50, the two-part series “How will the Biden Administration Interpret Amended TSCA?” and “How will the New Administration affect the EPA?,” fitting milestone episodes for this podcast dedicated to engaging and informing listeners with intelligent, insightful conversation around key issues affecting industrial, pesticidal, and specialty...
The United Kingdom (UK) Health and Safety Executive (HSE) published a REACH eBulletin on February 26, 2021, announcing upcoming deadlines for businesses for UK REACH. As reported in our February 9, 2021, memorandum, “Following Brexit, UK Establishes New Chemical Regulatory Regimes,” the UK brought the European Union (EU) Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation into law on January 1, 2021, as UK REACH. According to HSE, measures have...