ATSDR Announces Development of the Set 24 Toxicological Profiles

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ATSDR:

On September 9, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) of the Department of Health and Human Services announced the development of the Set 24 Toxicological Profiles.   According to the Federal Register notice, the profiles will be available to the public for review and comment on or about October 17, 2010.

ATSDR develops these profiles to fulfill its obligations under the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.), which amended the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA) (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.)  Among the statutory requirements is a mandate for the Administrator of ATSDR to prepare toxicological profiles for each substance included on the Priority List of Hazardous Substances.  This list names 275 hazardous substances found at National Priorities List (NPL) sites that pose the most significant potential threat to human health as determined by ATSDR and EPA.  The list is not a list of “most toxic” substances, but rather a prioritization of substances based on a combination of their frequency, toxicity, and potential for human exposure at NPL sites.

The profiles are used to set cleanup priorities at waste sites, but the EPA also uses them to support regulatory actions under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and other statutes.  Thus, companies manufacturing, processing, and using chemicals, as well as environmental and public health groups, are frequently interested in the development of ATSDR Toxicological Profiles.

The Set 24 Toxicological Profiles

The following toxicological profiles are now being developed:

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Toxicological profile                     CAS number
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Toxaphene………………………………………..       8001-35-2
Trichlorobenzene*
1,2,3-Trichlorobenzene…………………………         87-61-6
1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene…………………………        120-82-1
1,3,5-Trichlorobenzene…………………………        108-70-3
Trichlorobenzene…………………………..      12002-48-1
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* Denotes new profile.