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Jeff Morris, former Director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), wrote a column published on August 18, 2020, by Chemical Watch.  In the column, “Expert Focus:  Community-based exposures and susceptibilities — a social justice challenge for TSCA implementation,” Morris discusses how risk evaluations conducted under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) provide an opportunity to address community exposures and...

The European Union’s (EU) Horizon 2020 project GRACIOUS has launched its stakeholder engagement platform and started an open consultation on the GRACIOUS Framework.  The GRACIOUS project invites stakeholders from industry, regulators, policy makers, consultants, non-governmental organizations (NGO), and academia to use the platform to provide their opinions on the progress within the project, including whether the structure of the GRACIOUS Framework is “clear and...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues to regulate “forever chemicals,” named such for their persistence and risk to the environment and health. On July 27, 2020, the EPA issued a long-awaited final rule amending significant new use rules (SNUR) issued earlier on such chemicals — one pertinent to certain perfluoroalkyl sulfonate chemical substances and the other on long-chain perfluoroalkyl carboxylate (LCPFAC) chemical substances. To some, the final rule...

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...

Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) is pleased to announce that Managing Partner Lynn L. Bergeson has again been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America© in 2021 for Environmental Law and Environmental Litigation.  This marks the 21st year of Ms. Bergeson’s inclusion in the Best Lawyers list, a designation given to lawyers nominated by their peers based on professional abilities and talent in the legal industry. Ms. Bergeson has also been named a leading...

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,...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on August 17, 2020, that it is accepting nominations for the 2021 Green Chemistry Challenge Awards.  EPA intends these awards to recognize innovation by American businesses and researchers that redesign chemical products and processes to reduce or eliminate the use and manufacture of hazardous substances.  The 2021 Green Chemistry Challenge Awards nomination package is now available, and nominations are due December 4, 2020.  EPA...

The European Union (EU)-funded projects NanoHarmony and NANOMET-Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have jointly organized a September 16, 2020, webinar on “The Pathway to Test Guidelines:  from science to standards for nanomaterials.”  Participants will learn how OECD develops Test Guidelines, using case studies from the Test Guidelines that are supported through the projects for expansion into nanomaterials.  The webinar will explain how novel...

This week I sat down with Dr. Jeff Morris, immediate past Director of EPA’s Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), the EPA office that regulates the industrial chemical sector.  Jeff directed EPA’s implementation of the 2016 amendments to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and headed the office most immediately impacted by the significant changes brought about by the Lautenberg amendments. In our discussion, we talk about how Jeff and his OPPT colleagues managed...

On August 17, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) published a report entitled Lack of Planning Risks EPA’s Ability to Meet Toxic Substances Control Act Deadlines.  OIG conducted the audit to determine whether EPA met the deadlines already imposed by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg Act) in 2016, which amended the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), and has the staff, resources, and...