In March 2019, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report indicating that the U.S Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently had halted health risk assessments for nine chemicals. This report, requested by U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), focuses on the extent of the EPA’s…
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has published an updated version of the Community Rolling Action Plan (CoRAP) for the years 2019 - 2021. With this update, EU Member State authorities will evaluate 100 chemical substances for risk assessment during the scheduled time period. The CoRAP…
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced the release of 24 studies on Pigment Violet 29 (PV29). These studies were used by the EPA to develop draft risk evaluation for the chemical substance. The release of the studies is part of the Agency’s ongoing…
On March 20, 2019, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a list of 40 chemicals scheduled to undergo prioritization for risk evaluation. This list has been released to allow the public the chance to submit feedback (related to uses, hazards, exposure, etc.) for these…
In March 2019, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report indicating that the U.S Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently had halted health risk assessments for nine chemicals. This report, requested by U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), focuses on the extent of the EPA’s…
For any chemical safety professional, having the right data is essential for making the best possible informed decisions. Correspondingly, one of the most critical aspects of any information resource is comprehensiveness. Here we focus on the issue of comprehensive content, review what makes it so…
Replacing hazardous substances with safer alternatives, known as informed substitution, is a key aspect of chemical management. It can be useful for many companies wishing to reduce the health and environmental impact of the chemicals they use. Here we explore the issue of informed substitution,…
Chemical substances can pose significant risks for any business that manufactures, stores, distributes, or otherwise uses them. Being able to identify and manage these risks effectively is essential to help protect it, its workforce, and the environment. Because of this, having well-designed and properly executed…
The Government of Australia recently announced that the introduction of its Industrial Chemicals Law will be pushed back by one year. This latest delay marks the third in a series of postponements for the law. Most recently scheduled for introduction on July 1, 2019, it…
Chemical safety professionals require fast, simple, and direct access to relevant information to make the best possible informed decisions. ToxPlanet and its suite of decision support solutions are designed to help manage, with optimal efficiency, the impact of chemicals in the workplace and on the…
With relevance across virtually every chemical subdiscipline, green chemistry is a philosophy centered on the reduction of hazardous chemical substance creation and use. It is also focused on the development of processes and products to facilitate this reduction. Here we explore the topic of green…
Every year, the results of millions of scientific studies are published throughout the world in tens of thousands of publications. These studies reflect new information and advancements in virtually every scientific discipline. For many years, this has been a universally accepted way of contributing knowledge…
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has announced the availability of new skin notation profiles for 5 chemical substances - atrazine, catechol, chlorinated camphene, pentachlorophenol, and sodium fluoroacetate. This adds to a steadily…
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) and the European Commission (EC) recently signed a formal agreement in which ECHA commits to providing recommendations for occupational exposure limits (OELs) for chemical substances on a steady basis. This obligates ECHA to evaluate four to five substances each year,…
For chemical safety professionals and researchers of all types, data gaps are an all-too-common problem. Here we explore the issue of data gaps, review the reasons why they occur, and discuss some of the ways that ToxPlanet can help you manage them quickly and effectively.
By definition, research is systematic investigation designed to obtain information on a given subject area with the aim of answering questions and reaching conclusions. While several different means of categorizing research exist, one key distinction is “primary” vs. “secondary”. Here we take a general look…
On January 7, 2019, the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) released its first public policy agenda. This represents a landmark event in AIHA’s ongoing efforts to help prevent unnecessary work-related illnesses and injuries. The agenda covers fifteen key issues: Let’s take a closer look at…
On January 15, 2019, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) expanded its Candidate List by adding six substances of very high concern (SVHCs). These are 2,2-bis(4'-hydroxyphenyl)-4-methylpentane, benzo[k]fluoranthene, fluoranthene, phenanthrene, pyrene, and 1,7,7-trimethyl-3-(phenylmethylene)bicyclo[2.2.1]heptan-2-one. The addition brings the total number of substances on the list to 197. SVHCs…
It’s the beginning of a new year and with it comes a new set of industry events designed to allow the toxicology and chemical safety community to meet, exchange new information and ideas, present research findings, and advertise its products and services. Here is a…
EPA is announcing the release of the IRIS Program Outlook (December 2018) on the IRIS website. The document describes assessments that are currently in development and their projected public milestones. These assessments have been identified as high priority needs of the Agency for the fiscal…
The European Parliament and the Council have come to an agreement on the Commission's second proposal to broaden the list of recognized cancer-causing chemicals in the workplace. With this agreement, 8 additional cancer-causing chemicals will be covered by the Carcinogens and Mutagens Directive, including diesel…
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is amending its food additive regulations in response to two food additive petitions, to no longer allow for the use of a total of 7 synthetic flavoring substances and flavor enhancers (adjuvants). The FDA determined that the data presented…
The Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) is proposing regulatory changes concerning the averaging of concentrations of reproductive toxicants in food products and determining the average use of a consumer product for purposes of calculating exposures to listed reproductive toxicants. Public comments must be…
On September 28, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the general approaches that the Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) may use to identify potential candidate chemicals for prioritization under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Read More
Despite increasing amounts of nanomaterials in products on the EU market, not enough is known about their hazards to adequately assess and control their risks. To bridge this knowledge gap, the REACH annexes that specify what information is required from companies placing chemicals on the market have been revised, legally obliging industry…