Memoranda

The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) announced on April 13, 2011, that it has updated REACH-IT to allow the submission of notifications for substances in articles. Beginning June 1, 2011, companies must notify to ECHA substances present in articles they produce or import that were included on the substances of very high concern (SVHC) Candidate List before December 1, 2010, if both of the following conditions are met: ECHA states that, to explain the actual submission process,...

Three Subcommittees of the Green Ribbon Science Panel (Panel) have scheduled several teleconferences between April 4 and April 19, 2011, to discuss potential revisions to the California Department of Toxic Substances Control’s (DTSC) Safer Consumer Product Alternatives (SCPA) regulations. These teleconferences are open to the public and comments may be provided. The three Subcommittees and the scheduled teleconferences are as follows: As noted, the teleconferences are open to the...

On April 1, 2011, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) announced the availability of an update to the Guidance on Requirements for Substances in Articles. The update replaces the previous Guidance. Beginning June 1, 2011, companies must notify to ECHA substances present in articles they produce or import that were included on the substances of very high concern (SVHC) Candidate List before December 1, 2010, if both of the following conditions are met:...

Two of the trade associations named as negotiators by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding its proposal for the imposition of generic drug user fees have filed comments regarding the proposal that may frame their negotiating posture with the Agency going forward. The Society of Chemical Manufacturers and Affiliates’ (SOCMA) Bulk Pharmaceutical Task Force and the European Chemical Industry Council’s (CEFIC) Fine Chemicals Group urged FDA to impose a registration fee...

On March 29, 2011, the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works held a hearing entitled “Oversight Hearing on Disease Clusters and Environmental Health.” Committee Chair Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID), Ranking Member of the Superfund, Toxics, and Environmental Health Subcommittee, introduced the Strengthening Protections for Children and Communities from Disease Clusters Act (S. 76), also known as Trevor’s Law, on January 25, 2011. The bill...

On March 30 and 31, 2011, the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will hold a Food Advisory Committee meeting on the possible link between synthetic dyes in food products and behavioral issues in children, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Members of the Food Advisory Committee have been charged to “consider available relevant data on the possible association between consumption of certified color...

Now that the number of substances included on the European Union’s Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) Candidate List is up to 47 and counting, it is important to pay closer attention to requirements pertaining to substances of very high concern (SVHC). Article 7 of REACH requires producers, importers, and suppliers of articles to notify the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) of the presence in articles of SVHCs that have been on the Candidate...

Effective April 18, 2011, Jim Willis, Director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) Chemical Control Division (CCD), will join the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) as the Executive Secretary of the Basel, Stockholm, and Rotterdam Conventions. Willis has been with EPA for more than 20 years in various staff through senior management positions. He also worked with UNEP for a number of years before returning to...

On March 12, 2011, China’s State Administration of Work Safety (SAWS) issued Decree 591, “Regulation on the Safe Management of Dangerous Chemicals,” which concerns the safe use of chemicals. The regulation is very wide ranging in scope and “sets the tone” for future chemicals legislation. As one of the more immediate impacts, State Decree 591 uses the National Standards GB 13690-2009 on the general rules for the classification and hazard communication of chemicals,...

Last month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) updated its table listing the sunset dates of chemicals subject to final Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Section 4 and related Section 12(b) actions. The table lists, in ascending Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) Registry Number order, all chemical substances and mixtures that are and/or have been the subject of final TSCA Section 4 test rules and/or TSCA Section 4 enforceable consent agreements/orders (ECA) issued by EPA under...