EDF Health

Pediatricians: Reform TSCA to protect kids. ACC responds (a la W.C. Fields): We love kids, too

By / Published: April 26, 2011

Richard Denison, Ph.D., is a Senior Scientist.

A long-awaited and full-throated endorsement of comprehensive reform of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) from the venerable American Academy of Pediatricians (AAP) was published online yesterday in the journal Pediatrics.

Right down the line, the AAP’s 8-page policy statement calling for a wholesale overhaul of TSCA mirrors the recommendations of health and environmental advocates, academic researchers and just about anyone else who has paid attention to the mounting body of evidence documenting the linkages between rising chemical exposures and adverse effects on the health of our population, especially the most vulnerable among us:  the developing fetus, infants and young children.

The AAP’s recommendations also closely track key provisions in TSCA reform bills introduced last year in both Houses of Congress as well as the Safe Chemicals Act of 2011 just re-introduced in the U.S. Senate this month.

This latest statement from the Academy adds it to the list of other major medical and health associations that have previously called on Congress to  revamp TSCA, including the American Medical Association, the American Public Health Association and the American Nurses Association.

Given this growing chorus, it is perhaps not surprising that the American Chemistry Council (ACC) would seek to worm its way in to claim that it, too, loves kids and supports TSCA reform.

But dig a bit deeper, and what is most striking is that ACC stridently opposes essentially every element of TSCA reform called for by the American Academy of Pediatrics.  Read More »

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ACC on Safe Chemicals Act of 2011: If you can’t say anything nice …

By / Published: April 15, 2011

Richard Denison, Ph.D., is a Senior Scientist.

The Consumer Specialty Products Association found some nice things to say about it.  DuPont did too.  Even the National Petrochemical & Refiners Association acknowledged some improvements.

And the American Chemistry Council?  Read More »

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TSCA reform 2.0, aka, Safe Chemicals Act of 2011: Tastes great, less filling

By / Published: April 14, 2011

Richard Denison, Ph.D., is a Senior Scientist.

The Safe Chemicals Act of 2011 was introduced in the U.S. Senate today by Senator Frank Lautenberg and is co-sponsored by Senators Amy Klobuchar, Charles Schumer, and Barbara Boxer.

In the TSCA reform debate, some things haven’t changed from last year:  TSCA is just as badly in need of an overhaul, and consumers and the chemical industry’s customers have no more confidence in the safety of chemicals in use today than they did a year ago.  States, other countries and the marketplace all continue to act to advance modern chemical safety policies and practices.  We in the advocacy community are still waiting for the chemical industry to offer some of its own proposals for reform – though some individual companies and product associations have been more forthcoming.

In contrast, the 2011 version of the Safe Chemicals Act has changed in some important ways – and for the better.  It includes a number of improvements over last year’s version that would both boost health protections and ease implementation and workability.

[Updated 5-9-11:  Here’s a side-by-side comparing the 2011 version to the 2010 version of the Act.]  Read More »

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TSCA reform advocates to ACC: Give us something to work with!

By / Published: March 30, 2011

Richard Denison, Ph.D., is a Senior Scientist.

An article just out in Chemical Week by senior editor Kara Sissel simply nails it in describing the state of affairs on TSCA reform as it played out at last week’s GlobalChem conference.

The captions under the side-by-side photos of American Chemistry Council (ACC) President Cal Dooley and yours truly tell it all.  Mr. Dooley laments the increasingly complex and unpredictable regulatory landscape that finally drove ACC to shift away from its longstanding opposition to TSCA reform.  But my plea that it is long past time for ACC to come forward with its own specific proposals for that reform speaks to where things have been stuck for much of the past year.  Read More »

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Advocates to treat chemical industry to free lunch at next week’s GlobalChem – no joke!

By / Published: March 18, 2011

Richard Denison, Ph.D., is a Senior Scientist.

[Update 2:20 EDT:  For GlobalChem attendees who would like to attend our luncheon but won’t yet be at the conference on Monday, we have a call-in number you can use:  (800) 256-8682; code 43491.]

Next week is the chemical industry’s annual GlobalChem bash in Baltimore.  Like last year, there will be a session on “modernization” of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).  I was the NGO representative in that session last year, but alas, my inbox never saw an invite this year.  This year’s session will instead be limited to four industry speakers and there won’t be anyone from the advocacy community speaking in any other session of this year’s conference.

Might that be because the Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families coalition that EDF helped found held a rally in plain view of last year’s conference that featured a 20-foot-high rubber ducky and the message:  “Chemical industry — You can’t duck real reform!”?

But no matter.  To show our magnanimity, our coalition will be back this year on the first day (Monday, March 21) of the GlobalChem conference – and this time we’ll be offering a free lunch to the participants.  Lunch will be served from 11:30-12:30 in the same hotel, the Hilton Baltimore, that is hosting the industry conference.  But there’s more than just lunch on the menu … .   Read More »

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Memo to ACC et al.: What’s said in Maryland doesn’t stay in Maryland

By / Published: March 10, 2011

Richard Denison, Ph.D., is a Senior Scientist.

It’s only a little more than 30 miles from Washington, DC to Annapolis, the Capitol of the State of Maryland.  But to judge from testimony given there on February 24 and March 1 by representatives of the chemical, formulated products and food industries, you’d think Annapolis existed in a parallel universe, with only a passing resemblance to the one in DC.

The occasions were hearings on companion bills introduced into the Maryland State Senate, SB 637, and the State House of Delegates, HB 759, titled the “Healthy Kids, Healthy Maryland – Toxic Chemical Identification and Reduction.”

Actually, the industry associations’ testimonies suggest either of two alternative universes.  In one of them, Maryland should do nothing to address dangerous chemical exposures because the federal Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and other related laws are working quite well, thank you very much.  Residing in this parallel universe are the American Chemistry Council (ACC), the American Cleaning Institute (ACI, until recently the more accurately named Soap and Detergent Association), the Maryland Industrial Technology Alliance and the Consumer Specialty Products Association (CSPA).

In the other parallel universe, Maryland should do nothing to address dangerous chemical exposures because it will only get in the way of TSCA reform, which is just around the corner.  Inhabiting this alternative universe are the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA), the Can Manufacturers Institute, and yes – as another indication that it just can’t quite make up its mind about TSCA reform – once again, the American Chemistry Council.  Read More »

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