On February 25, 2014, the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced the results of an NSF and National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO)-funded independent study that identifies more than $1 trillion in global revenue from nano-enabled products in 2013. NSF states that, to help quantify the global growth in nanotechnology research and development, Lux Research released a new report on global spending for emerging nanotechnology and the next generation of nano-enabled...
Archives
March 3, 2014
NNCO Releases 2014 NNI Strategic Plan
On February 28, 2014, the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) announced the release of the 2014 National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) Strategic Plan. The NNI Strategic Plan represents the consensus of the participating agencies as to the high-level goals and priorities of the NNI and specific objectives for at least the next three years. It is intended to provide an integrated, interagency approach informing the nanotechnology-specific strategic plans of NNI...
February 12, 2014
EPA Promulgates Final SNURs for Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes and Infused Carbon Nanostructures
On February 12, 2014, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued, through a direct final rule, significant new use rules (SNUR) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for 35 chemical substances that were the subject of premanufacture notices (PMN). The 35 substances include four identified as multi-walled carbon nanotubes (generic) that were the subject of a December 3, 2012, TSCA Section 5(e) consent order. The consent order requires the use of personal protective equipment...
February 11, 2014
Lynn L. Bergeson Participates in Congressionally-Requested Forum on Nanomanufacturing, Which Is Summarized in New GAO Report
On February 7, 2014, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report entitled Nanomanufacturing: Emergence and Implications for U.S. Competitiveness, the Environment, and Human Health, which provides highlights from a Congressionally-requested forum on specific issues in nanotechnology manufacturing that was held July 23-24, 2013. The House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology asked the GAO and the National Academies to convene the forum and elicit the...
January 10, 2014
Journal of Nanoparticle Research Publishes Article Describing Occupational Safety and Health Criteria for Responsible Development of Nanotechnology
On December 7, 2013, the Journal of Nanoparticle Research published online an article entitled “Occupational safety and health criteria for responsible development of nanotechnology.” The authors, who are affiliated with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), describe five criterion actions that they believe should be practiced by decision-makers to ensure the responsible development of nanotechnology: “(1) anticipate, identify, and track potentially...
December 20, 2013
NIOSH Publishes Nanotechnology Research and Guidance Strategic Plan
On December 20, 2013, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a document entitled Protecting the Nanotechnology Workforce: NIOSH Nanotechnology Research and Guidance Strategic Plan, 2013-2016. NIOSH describes the document as “the roadmap being used to advance basic understanding of the toxicology and workplace exposures involved so that appropriate risk management practices can be implemented during discovery, development, and...
November 19, 2013
Draft NNI Strategic Plan Released for Public Comment
On November 19, 2013, the National Science and Technology Council, Committee on Technology, and Subcommittee on Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology requested public comments on the draft 2014 National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan. The Strategic Plan provides the framework within which each National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) agency will carry out its nanotechnology programs and is intended to sustain coordination of interagency activities. The Strategic Plan...
November 11, 2013
NIOSH Issues New Recommendations to Control Worker Exposure to Engineered Nanomaterials
On November 8, 2013, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a report entitled Current Strategies for Engineering Controls in Nanomaterial Production and Downstream Handling Processes, which identifies and describes strategies for the engineering control of worker exposure during the production or use of engineered nanomaterials. NIOSH notes that there are currently more than 1,000 nanomaterial-containing consumer products available, including “makeup,...
November 8, 2013
Court Vacates and Remands EPA’s Conditional Registration of HeiQ’s Nanosilver Products
On November 7, 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit granted in part and denied in part the Natural Resources Defense Council’s (NRDC) petition for review of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) conditional registration of HeiQ AGS-20 and AGS-20 U (collectively, AGS-20) nanosilver products. The court held that “substantial evidence” supported EPA’s decision to use the characteristics of toddlers rather than infants in determining whether AGS-20 placed...
October 30, 2013
FDA Finds Current Regulatory Review Processes Protect Public from Risks of Nanomaterials
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) posted a blog item on October 24, 2013, concerning the use of nanotechnology to develop new drugs. According to the item, “[t]here are already many products made using materials at the nanoscale, including new kinds of clothing, packaging materials, and light-weight, but strong, building materials.” CDER conducted a series of risk assessment and risk management exercises concerning...