USA Regulatory News

According to California air standards, businesses have roughly one month to phase out perchloroethylene from dry cleaning operations, but more state- and federal-level actions over the solvent are exp...

According to California air standards, businesses have roughly one month to phase out perchloroethylene from dry cleaning operations, but more state- and federal-level actions over the solvent are expected soon.

The ban takes effect on 1 January 2023 and was created by a 2007 California Air Resources Board (CARB) rule. By doing so, California will become the first US state to ban the use of potential carcinogens in dry cleaning. Companies must switch to any safer alternative for this major application of perchloroethylene (PERC).

The bill banning PERC was adopted in other US states, including Minnesota, Michigan, and Maine. Minnesota will phase out PERC in 2026. In Michigan, legislators introduced a bill (HB 6511) in November 2022,  to block dry cleaners from using the compound by the end of 2028 and if approved, the legislation will ban the production and sale in 2027. The state of Maine, situated on the east-coast implements state-level National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) for the substance’s dry-cleaning applications. And the regulations of the state of New York align with a related 2008 national rule that prohibited PERC dry cleaning machines in residential buildings from December 2020.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the US is developing a TSCA risk management rule for PERC. PERC was one of the first ten chemicals to be subject to a risk evaluation under the amended 2016 law. When the risk management rule is finalized, it may preempt certain state legislation. 

The "Waste Management, Extended Producer Responsibility and Recycling Promotion" Bill No 20.920, popularly known as "The Bill" or "REP Bill," emphasizes waste generation reduction and recycling promot...

The "Waste Management, Extended Producer Responsibility and Recycling Promotion" Bill No 20.920, popularly known as "The Bill" or "REP Bill," emphasizes waste generation reduction and recycling promotion. It holds importers and producers financially responsible for properly managing the waste produced by goods sold on the domestic market. The goals of the Bill are to reduce waste creation and increase garbage reuse by up to 30%. By internalizing the costs and unfavorable externalities related to waste management.  

Moreover, another bill called the Bill of Natural Resources and Environment which aims to ensure that waste producers do not escape their responsibility for their waste. The Bill establishes the concept of "Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)," which requires importers and producers of specific goods designated as "priority products" to plan and finance the collection and treatment of the waste using a management system. 

Even though the Extended Producer Responsibility Act has been in effect since the middle of 2016, there are some provisions that, to be enforced, call for a competent authority to issue Supreme Decrees outlining the instruments intended to prevent waste production and advance its valuation. 

In 2022 the environment ministry of Chile released its biennial regulatory program, which includes plans to increase extended producer responsibility and put a special emphasis on information availability. There is no deadline for the government to disclose its Risk Assessment Resolution on the agenda. A period of 18 months was set forth by Supreme Decree 57/2021 on 9 February 2021 for the country to pass the resolution. 

The priority products covered by any supreme decree that establishes recollection objectives must be mentioned by it. This includes the classifications or subcategories it enforces, the recall objectives, the related duties, the producers it binds, and the limitations placed on an individual or collective management systems. 

A decision to modify the volatile organic compound (VOC) limits for certain adhesives and sealants has been made in Los Angeles. The decision is incorporated in the update to rule 1168 on VOC content ...

A decision to modify the volatile organic compound (VOC) limits for certain adhesives and sealants has been made in Los Angeles. The decision is incorporated in the update to rule 1168 on VOC content in adhesives and sealants produced and distributed in the LA region. The modifications to the limits were adopted by California’s South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) on the 4th of November 2022.  

The new amendment adjusts the VOC limits for around 100 product categories. Furthermore, it adjusts the phaseout requirements for para-chlorobenzotriflouride (PCBTF) and tertiary-butyl acetate (t-Bac).  The manufacturing of PCBTF and t-Bac will be banned on the 1st of January 2024 and the sale of products containing these substances will be prohibited from 2028.  

On 25 September the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) recommended to amend its existing VOC rule to align with the 2018 "Phase V" Ozone Transportation Commission (OTC) regul...

On 25 September the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) recommended to amend its existing VOC rule to align with the 2018 "Phase V" Ozone Transportation Commission (OTC) regulation. This more stringent model, whose standards were only recently passed in California, has not been adopted by any other U.S. state. Colorado air regulators put forward rigorous volatile organic compound (VOC) requirements for consumer products. By adopting the rule, the state’s limits for these goods would be strictest apart from California. 

Colorado's existing VOC rule, Regulation No. 21, conforms to the Ozone Transportation Commission's 2012 'Phase IV' model rule. To reduce ground level ozone, which is the main constituent in smog pollution, and to develop draft rules for locals, the coalition of north-eastern states in the US (i.e., OTC) is collaborating to find a solution. For a variety of goods, including carpet cleaners, dusters, odour removers, insect repellants, and glass and tyre cleaners, the proposed update includes revised definitions and new or reduced VOC limits. It does not, however, contain all phase V model rule requirements. Because of freezing and safety issues, it omits new VOC criteria for windshield water repellent as well as for some lubricants that have restrictions on reformulation. 

Additionally, the proposal forgoes stricter regulations on some aerosols due to propellant concerns. The proposed rule mentions that Colorado recently passed laws banning per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), which includes a deadline of 2027 for the phase-out of hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs) as propellants in cosmetics and fabric treatments. 

Manufacturers won't be permitted to utilize the current propellants in these aerosol products after that date, and they "are unsure of the ability of future products to comply with the OTC VOC content limits," the statement reads. However, the division's limitations on aerosol VOC concentration are expected to be reviewed in the future, according to the air quality commission. 

As of 19 July 2022, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requested information regarding uses of fluorinated polyethylene in food contact containers. This proposal is a part of ongoing efforts ...

As of 19 July 2022, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requested information regarding uses of fluorinated polyethylene in food contact containers. This proposal is a part of ongoing efforts to guarantee the safety of authorized food contact uses, as fluorination of polyethylene may result in the creation of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The FDA is looking for scientific evidence and information on current uses of fluorinated polyethylene in food contact, consumer dietary exposure that may arise from those uses, and safety data on chemicals that may migrate from fluorinated polyethylene food containers. 

A marketing study on fluorinated polyethylene by the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) found that its "uses vary from packaged food and consumer goods that individuals buy to larger containers used by shops like restaurants or larger drums used by businesses to store and transport fluids." 

Following the agency's 2021 discovery of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in some fluorinated barrels, just seven comments were submitted in response to a request for information (RFI). It's unclear how the agency will move given the scant response to the data call-in, which was completed on 18 October 2022. 

In August 2022 the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has stated that it intends to expand its program encouraging federal agencies to acquire materials free of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substanc...

In August 2022 the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has stated that it intends to expand its program encouraging federal agencies to acquire materials free of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) to include a number of product groups. 

The initiative will support the agencies' efforts to purchase PFAS-free commodities, a goal established in the Biden-Harris executive order for 2021 and confirmed in implementation guidelines published in August. With an annual procurement budget surpassing $650 billion, the government has an enormous purchasing power that will encourage a wider market transition to safer substitutes for the additional product categories. 

The EPA's Recommendations of Specifications, Standards, and Ecolabels for Federal Purchasing is intended to assist federal agencies in meeting the mandate of the executive order to acquire PFAS-free products to the maximum degree practical. 

The EPA is interested in extending" the regulations to the following industries:  

• infrastructure 

• landscaping 

• building and construction 

• laboratories, and healthcare  

• food and cafeteria services  

• clothing and uniforms 

• professional services. 

For the product classes mentioned previously, the suggestions will provide standard and ecolabel bodies that adhere to the organization's Framework for the Assessment of Environmental Performance Standards and Ecolabels for Federal Purchasing. 

The update is directed at product categories that are known to contain PFASs, according to the regulator. Standard and ecolabel organizations would need to demonstrate how their criteria are addressing the problem where persistent compounds present the most significant environmental and/or human health impacts in a product's lifecycle. 
  
Additionally, the EPA will assess additional standards and eco-labels for previously established procurement categories, including: office and furniture (Including copy paper), electronics (including phones, computers, imaging devices, and televisions), cleaning goods, (Including cleaners, tissues, and trash bags), and machine shop operations (particularly parts wash solution). 

The organization continued, saying that its Environmentally Preferable Purchasing (EPP) program is actively working to assess contracts to ensure that they comply with the procurement standards. 

The US, Canada, and EU are about to start a pilot project that will test a system for exchanging data on substances and provide guidance on the potential development of a global database of informatio...

The US, Canada, and EU are about to start a pilot project that will test a system for exchanging data on substances and provide guidance on the potential development of a global database of information on chemicals led by the OECD.

Bob Diderich, head of the OECD's environmental health and safety division, said ‘’a pilot project has been agreed upon between North American countries and the EU that will test how the database and exchange of information could work internationally while speaking at Chemical Watch's Regulatory Summit Europe, held on September 26-27.’’

The International Uniform Chemical Information Database (IUCLID) of the EU will serve as its ‘core’. The OECD and ECHA together created IUCLID, an IT system that enables organizations to record, save, manage, and exchange data on the inherent and dangerous features of chemicals.

According to Mr. Diderich, IUCLID employs the OECD's harmonized templates (OHTs), which are standard data formats for reporting data used for chemical risk assessment. These have also been incorporated into the chemical information systems of other nations.

"Because IUCLID uses OECD standards for data exchange, more and more countries are interested in using IUCLID for their own regulatory processes," he said.

‘’It would therefore make sense for it to be the core of a global information system’, he added.

Mr. Diderich said, ‘the pilot project will help the OECD determine on what form its own vision for a database could take and will attempt to provide answers to questions like whether it will be a distributed system of national databases that communicate with one another or a centralized system that everyone contributes to.’

Mr. Diderich did not confirm when the project would begin.

The idea was first floated in 2018, and has support from the industry.