Former EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt introducing the 2018 proposal he championed on “Strengthening Transparency in Regulatory Science”? Continue Reading >
The REACH Committee of the EU Commission agreed on July 11 to advance a proposal that would restrict the presence of four phthalates (DEHP, DBP, BBP, DIBP) in products placed on the market. The proposed restriction would limit the amount of these common plasticizers, individually or in any combination, to a concentration below 0.1% by weight. Continue Reading >
We are seven weeks away from the California Proposition 65 amendments adopted in 2016 going into full effect, including substantial changes to the wording and format for providing warnings, new guidance on providing warnings for website purchases, and tailored warnings for certain exposure scenarios (such as restaurants), as well as important new provisions regarding the division of responsibility for providing warnings among retailers, manufacturers, distributors, and others in the supply chain. Continue Reading >
Thousands of companies that sell chemical products online should pay close attention to a new EU enforcement initiative aimed at the apparent widespread failure to disclose health and safety hazard information to consumers making website purchases. EU member state enforcement authorities will focus on internet sales of chemical products, according to an announcement regarding the launch of the 8th REACH enforcement project. Continue Reading >
Reversing course from an Obama-era EPA agreement to initiate a rulemaking to impose spill prevention, countermeasure and control (SPCC) requirements for hazardous substances, EPA announced on June 19th that it believes that existing regulations are adequate to meet its obligations under the Clean Water Act (CWA) and no new regulatory program is needed:
Based on the reported frequency and impacts of identified CWA [hazardous substance] HS discharges, and the Agency’s evaluation of the existing framework of EPA regulatory requirements relevant to preventing CWA HS discharges, EPA has determined that the existing framework of regulatory requirements serves to prevent CWA HS discharges. Continue Reading >
Responding quickly to a landmark court ruling requiring coffee sold in the state to bear a Proposition 65 warning label, California has initiated a proposed rulemaking to clarify that exposure to acrylamide and other chemicals “created by and inherent in the roasting of coffee beans and brewing of coffee” do not pose a significant risk of cancer. Continue Reading >
EPA released on June 1 the “problem formulation” documents for the first 10 chemicals for which risk evaluations are being conducted under the amended Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). (See: https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-takes-three-important-steps-ensure-chemical-safety-under-lautenberg-act-proposes.) The documents describe the chemical use and exposure scenarios that the agency expects to examine, as well as the hazards, exposures, conditions of use, and exposed populations (e.g., workers, consumers, bystanders) that will be considered as EPA conducts the risk evaluations. Continue Reading >
