Monthly Archives: October 2014

On October 22, 2014, EPA published a proposed rule establishing pretreatment standards under the Clean Water Act for discharges of pollutants -- mercury in dental amalgam -- into publicly owned treatment works (POTWs). Under the proposed rule, dentists would use amalgam separators and best management practices to control and reduce discharges.  To minimize the burden on dental practices, the proposed rule would allow dentists to demonstrate compliance by proper use of the separators rather than by discharge monitoring.  Recognizing the challenges of regulating an industry with over 100,000 facilities nationwide, EPA also is proposing to streamline permitting and oversight requirements. EPA…

On September 30, 2014, Governor Brown signed S.B. 1019 into law.  S.B. 1019 requires manufacturers of flexible polyurethane foam or upholstered (or reupholstered) furniture to label their products as containing -- or not containing, as the case may be -- added flame retardants. The law's stated purpose is to "provide California consumers clear information about the furniture products they are purchasing, specifically concerning compliance with fire safety standards and the presence of added flame retardant chemicals." Aside from the fact that the information to be provided is not all that clear, compliance with S.B. 1019 will pose significant Proposition 65 challenges to…

November 28, 2014 is the deadline set by Maine’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) for the submission of reports under the Toxic Chemicals in Children’s Products Law. Affected entities are manufacturers and distributors of specified children’s products if those products are sold in Maine and contain intentionally-added cadmium, arsenic or mercury above the practical quantitation limits for those chemicals. Reports must include information such as product descriptions, sales information, the amount of the chemical in the product and the function of the chemical in the product. More information may be found on the DEP website. Products covered by the reporting…

The California Department of Toxic Substances Control has extended the comment period for its draft Priority Product Work Plan to October 21, 2014.  As GLO previously reported, DTSC released the draft Work Plan under the Safer Consumer Products Regulations on September 12, 2014.  The agency encourages comments to be submitted electronically. DTSC also has released an updated informational list of Candidate Chemicals, and has established an updated electronic database to search for chemicals identified on the list.  As GLO previously reported, the Safer Consumer Products Regulations do not themselves establish a definitive list of Candidate Chemicals.  Rather, chemicals are identified…

On September 30, 2014, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency published a final rule adding a nonylphenol category to the list of chemicals subject to reporting under Section 313 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) of 1986. This means that certain facilities that manufacture, process or otherwise use nonylphenols must report their releases and other waste management quantities of these chemicals above specified thresholds. Although EPA originally proposed to add this category by identifying chemical structure rather than individual affected Chemical Abstracts Service Registry Numbers (CASRNs), in the final rule EPA abandoned the structure identification approach and adopted the…