{"id":5788,"date":"2016-11-29T12:43:08","date_gmt":"2016-11-29T17:43:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/health\/?p=5788"},"modified":"2024-02-12T11:01:53","modified_gmt":"2024-02-12T16:01:53","slug":"off-and-running-epa-identifies-first-10-chemical-for-review-under-new-tsca","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/health\/2016\/11\/29\/off-and-running-epa-identifies-first-10-chemical-for-review-under-new-tsca\/","title":{"rendered":"Off and running: EPA identifies first 10 chemical for review under new TSCA"},"content":{"rendered":"

Richard Denison, Ph.D.,\u00a0<\/em>is a Lead Senior Scientist. \u00a0Lindsay McCormick and Jennifer McPartland contributed to this post.<\/p>\n

Today, in advance of the December 19, 2016 deadline specified under the new TSCA, EPA has announced <\/a>the first 10 chemicals to undergo risk evaluations (see list below).<\/p>\n

This is a very important early step called for under the Lautenberg Act, which passed Congress with overwhelming bipartisan support<\/a>.\u00a0 Early action by EPA was seen by stakeholders across the spectrum as essential to begin the process of restoring public and market confidence in our nation\u2019s chemical safety system.\u00a0 So EPA\u2019s issuance of this list in advance of the statutory deadline next month is a welcome sign of timely implementation of the new law.<\/p>\n

While not every chemical that everyone may have wanted is included among the first 10, that is because there are many more than 10 chemicals that need far greater scrutiny as to their safety.\u00a0 Indeed, the longer \u201cWork Plan Chemicals<\/a>\u201d list from which EPA drew the first 10 consists of nearly 100 chemicals that present significant potential risk.<\/p>\n

What is most important is that EPA gets started, so that it can complete risk evaluations of the first 10 and move on to the next.\u00a0 EPA now has 6 months to establish the scope of its risk evaluations for these chemicals, identifying the uses, hazards, exposure and vulnerable populations it will evaluate. \u00a0<\/p>\n

The 10 chemicals EPA has identified clearly warrant scrutiny, as there is significant evidence both that they pose hazards to health and the environment and that exposure to them is likely or actually occurring.\u00a0 For three of the 10 chemicals \u2013 TCE<\/a>, methylene chloride<\/a>, and NMP<\/a> \u2013 EPA previously completed risk assessments for narrow uses of them.\u00a0 Those assessments identified very high risks to workers and consumers from those uses, and EPA has proposed restrictions on them that are pending in OMB review (see here<\/a>, here<\/a> and here<\/a>).\u00a0 EPA\u2019s inclusion of these three chemicals on the first-10 list indicates it intends to examine a broader range of their uses and potential exposures going forward, which is called for under the new law.<\/p>\n

Below are the first 10 chemicals and examples of their uses and hazards.\u00a0 We\u2019ll have more information on these chemicals going forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Chemical name<\/strong><\/td>\nExamples of uses<\/strong><\/td>\nExamples of hazards<\/strong>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1,4-dioxane<\/td>\nDyes, varnishes, waxes, impurity in some industrial and consumer products<\/p>\n<\/td>\nPossible human carcinogen<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1-bromopropane
\n(aka n-propyl bromide
\nor nPB)<\/td>\n		Vapor degreasing, aerosol adhesives, foam cushions, dry cleaning<\/p>\n<\/td>\nPossible human carcinogen<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Asbestos<\/td>\nInsulation, brake pads, chlor-alkali industry<\/td>\nKnown human carcinogen; acute and chronic toxicity from inhalation exposures<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Carbon tetrachloride<\/td>\nChemical intermediate,\u00a0solvent<\/p>\n<\/td>\nProbable human carcinogen<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
HBCD (hexabromo
\ncyclododecane)*<\/td>\n		Flame retardant used in foam, electronics<\/p>\n<\/td>\nAcute aquatic toxicity<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Methylene chloride
\n(aka dichloromethane
\nor DCM)**<\/td>\n		Paint and coating-removal products,
\nautomotive products,\u00a0spray paint,\u00a0adhesives<\/p>\n<\/td>\n		Probable human carcinogen<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
N-methyl pyrrolidone
\n(NMP)**<\/td>\n		Paint and coating-removal products,
\ncleaning agent, chemical intermediate<\/p>\n<\/td>\n		Reproductive toxicity<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pigment Violet 29<\/td>\nDye used in automotive and other coatings
\nand plastics<\/p>\n<\/td>\n		Aquatic toxicity<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Trichloroethylene
\n(TCE)**<\/td>\n		Dry cleaning, consumer, commercial, and industrial degreasers<\/p>\n<\/td>\nKnown human carcinogen<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Tetrachloroethylene
\n(aka \u201cPerc\u201d)<\/td>\n		Dry cleaning, metals degreasing, spot
\nremovers, wood cleaners,
\nshoe polish<\/p>\n<\/td>\n		Probable human carcinogen<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

*\u00a0\u00a0 as part of cyclic aliphatic bromides cluster of flame retardants
\n** additional uses \u00a0and exposures beyond those in first risk assessments<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Richard Denison, Ph.D.,\u00a0is a Lead Senior Scientist. \u00a0Lindsay McCormick and Jennifer McPartland contributed to this post. Today, in advance of the December 19, 2016 deadline specified under the new TSCA, EPA has announced the first 10 chemicals to undergo risk evaluations (see list below). This is a very important early step called for under the …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":100,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[44,114108],"tags":[68,56107],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-5788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-policy","category-tsca","tag-epa","tag-lautenberg-act"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t