Archives

October 1, 2024

Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. and LexisNexis Publish 2024 Edition of Guide to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)

Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) is pleased to announce publication of the 2024 edition of Guide to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), LexisNexis (Guide to TSCA), the first under the editorial direction of the TSCA team at Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. Guide to TSCA is the definitive comprehensive treatise on TSCA, written for lawyers, regulatory affairs specialists, and commercial and business people who need to understand the details of this law. TSCA cuts across all business...
September 26, 2024

TSCA Reform: Eight Years Later — Panel 3: New Chemical Review

On June 26, 2024, B&C, along with the Environmental Law Institute and the George Washington University Milken Institute of Public Health, sponsored the all-day virtual conference, TSCA Reform — Eight Years Later. The quality of the discussion, the caliber of the participants, and the timeliness of the content motivated us to repurpose the substantive sessions. B&C and ELI are pleased to co-sponsor this episode of All Things Chemical® to enable our podcast audience to listen to...
September 19, 2024

TSCA Reform: Eight Years Later — Panel 2: Risk Evaluation and the Supporting Role Sections 4 and 8 Play

On June 26, 2024, B&C, along with the Environmental Law Institute and the George Washington University Milken Institute of Public Health, sponsored the all-day virtual conference, TSCA Reform — Eight Years Later. The quality of the discussion, the caliber of the participants, and the timeliness of the content motivated us to repurpose the substantive sessions. B&C and ELI are pleased to co-sponsor this episode of All Things Chemical® to enable our podcast audience to listen to...
September 12, 2024

TSCA Reform: Eight Years Later — Panel 1: Risk Management

On June 26, 2024, B&C, along with the Environmental Law Institute and the George Washington University Milken Institute of Public Health, sponsored the all-day virtual conference, TSCA Reform — Eight Years Later. The quality of the discussion, the caliber of the participants, and the timeliness of the content motivated us to repurpose the substantive sessions. B&C and ELI are pleased to co-sponsor this episode of All Things Chemical® to enable our podcast audience to listen to these...
September 9, 2024

Lynn L. Bergeson, “EPA Publishes Compliance Guide on Methylene Chloride,” Chemical Processing, September 9, 2024.

On July 10, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a compliance guide for its final methylene chloride risk management rule issued under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The final rule is complicated, and the compliance guide is a useful document for stakeholders to consider reading. 
August 29, 2024

Why are TSCA Citizen Petitions Filed? — A Conversation with Michael Connett

Download transcript. This week I had the pleasure of speaking with Michael Connett, Partner with Siri & Glimstad, LLP to discuss his epic litigation representing Food & Water Watch, a non-profit consumer organization that sued EPA over the fluoridation of drinking water. This issue has a long and complicated administrative and litigation history, and Michael and his firm are actively engaged in a groundbreaking federal litigation based on a judicial appeal of a denied Toxic Substances...
August 21, 2024

EPA Authors Describe Categorization Approach to PFAS to Identify Potential Candidates for Testing and Human Health Assessments

On August 18, 2024, Computational Toxicology published an article entitled “Development of chemical categories for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and the proof-of-concept approach to the identification of potential candidates for tiered toxicological testing and human health assessment.” Co-authored by members of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Center for Computational Toxicology & Exposure (CCTE) and Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention...
August 13, 2024

Proposed 1-BP Risk Management Rule Would Ban “Numerous” Consumer and Workplace Uses

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a proposed rule on August 8, 2024, to address the unreasonable risk of injury to human health presented by 1-bromopropane (1-BP) under its conditions of use (COU) as documented in EPA’s August 2020 Risk Evaluation for 1-BP and the December 2022 Revised Risk Determination for 1-BP prepared under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). 89 Fed. Reg. 65066. To address the identified unreasonable risk, EPA proposes requirements to, among other...
August 12, 2024

Lynn L. Bergeson, “EPA Targets But Doesn’t Ban N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP),” Chemical Processing, August 12, 2024.

On June 14, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued proposed restrictions under Section 6(a) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to protect workers and consumers from exposure to N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP) (89 Fed. Reg. 51134). To address the unreasonable risks the EPA identified, the agency proposes a combination of worker and consumer protections. Given NMP’s ubiquitous applications, this is an important TSCA proposal.
August 1, 2024

SCHC 2024 Annual Meeting, September 21-26, 2024, Charlotte, NC 

The Society for Chemical Hazard Communication Annual Meeting features an esteemed slate of speakers and subject matter experts presenting during general sessions and professional development courses. Richard E. Engler, Ph.D., Director of Chemistry, B&C, will present the "Navigating the Premanufacture Notice (PMN) Process Under Amended TSCA" workshop on Monday, September 23, 2024. Karin F. Baron, MSPH, Director of Hazard Communication and International Registration Strategy, B&C, will...
July 30, 2024

EPA Publishes Compliance Guide for Final Methylene Chloride Risk Management Rule

On July 10, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a compliance guide for its final methylene chloride risk management rule issued under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). According to EPA, the compliance guide will help industry, workers, and other interested stakeholders understand and comply with the new regulations to prevent injuries, long-term illnesses, and deaths. EPA also announced that in June 2024, it released a fact sheet on the rule containing...
July 29, 2024

EPA Begins 90-Day Comment Period on Proposed High-Priority Substance Designations for Five Chemicals

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on July 25, 2024, that it is proposing to designate acetaldehyde, acrylonitrile, benzenamine, vinyl chloride, and 4,4-methylene bis(2-chloroaniline) (MBOCA) as high-priority substances (HPS) for risk evaluation under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). 89 Fed. Reg. 60420. EPA is providing a 90-day comment period, during which interested persons may submit comments on the proposed designations of these chemicals as HPSs for risk...
July 24, 2024

Lynn L Bergeson, Kelly N Garson, “Loper Bright and TSCA: Will the demise of Chevron matter?,” Chemical Watch, July 22, 2024.

The standard of judicial review for most critical TSCA determinations under section 19 is "substantial evidence in the record taken as a whole". This is a tough standard, considerably more rigorous than the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) standard under section 706, where agency action will be set aside if it is "arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in accordance with law." The recent Loper Bright decision overturning Chevron has invited much...
July 19, 2024

EPA Releases Draft Risk Evaluation for 1,1-Dichloroethane and Draft Hazard Assessment of 1,2-Dichloroethane for Public Comment and Peer Review

On July 1, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the release of the draft risk evaluation for 1,1-dichloroethane (1,1-DCE) and the draft human health hazard assessment supporting the draft risk evaluation for 1,2-dichloroethane (1,2-DCE, also known as ethylene dichloride) prepared under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). EPA states that it “preliminarily determined 1,1-dichloroethane poses unreasonable risk to human health (of workers) and the environment.”...
July 19, 2024

Lynn L. Bergeson Quoted in Chemical Processing Article “What Ditching The Chevron Deference Means for the Chemical Industry”

On July 19, 2024, comments by Lynn L. Bergeson were featured in Chemical Processing’s article on what the Supreme Court ruling that overturned the landmark 1984 decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) means for the chemical industry. But not all influence is lost, according to Lynn Bergeson, Chemical Processing’s compliance columnist and managing director at Bergeson & Campbell. She and co-author Kelly N. Garson address several questions...
July 17, 2024

Lynn L. Bergeson, “What the EPA’s ban on ongoing use of asbestos tells us,” Speciality Chemicals Magazine, July/August 2024.

On 28 March, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued its long-awaited first final risk management rule under the Toxic Substances Control Acta (TSCA), banning the import and eventual use of chrysotile asbestos. This is the only form of asbestos known to be used in the US. You may be thinking now that because your company does not import or use asbestos, this does not affect you. You should care about it because the EPA's approach to the risk management of chrysotile asbestos has much...
July 16, 2024

EPA Grants TSCA Section 21 Petition Seeking Section 6 Rule Prohibiting Three PFAS Found in Fluorinated Plastic Containers

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on July 11, 2024, that it granted a petition filed under Section 21 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) requesting that EPA establish regulations under TSCA Section 6 prohibiting the manufacturing, processing, use, distribution in commerce, and disposal of three per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) formed during the fluorination of plastic containers. EPA “will promptly commence an appropriate proceeding under TSCA Section...
July 12, 2024

Lynn L. Bergeson, “Managing risk: what the EPA’s TSCA chemical use bans tell us,” Financier Worldwide, August 2024.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently issued final risk management rules under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) banning certain uses of two chemicals: chrysotile asbestos and methylene chloride. The identity of these two chemicals is less important than the process by which the EPA concluded that the banned uses of these chemicals pose unreasonable risks to human health and the environment, and the nature and intrusiveness of the workplace and other restrictions the EPA...
July 9, 2024

TSCA Reform — Eight Years Later: B&C, ELI, and GWU Conclude Best Available Conference

On June 26, 2024, Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®), the Environmental Law Institute (ELI), and the George Washington University (GWU) Milken Institute School of Public Health presented “TSCA Reform -- Eight Years Later.” This hybrid conference marked the eighth Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Annual Conference, reflecting on the accomplishments and challenges since the implementation of the 2016 Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Lautenberg Act) and...
July 9, 2024

Lynn L. Bergeson Quoted in Bloomberg Law Article “Supreme Court Rulings Boost Odds to Win Chemical Rule Challenges”

On July 9, 2024, comments by Lynn L. Bergeson were featured in Bloomberg Law’s article on the Supreme Court's decision in Loper Bright Enters. v. Raimondo, overturning the 40-year-old Chevron doctrine. Post-Chevron litigation will be interesting, said Lynn Bergeson, managing partner for Bergeson & Campbell PC, which helps companies navigate chemical regulations. “Challengers have a higher potential success on the merits of their arguments.” “We might get favorable...