On July 7, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued a decision invalidating two key provisions of the 2015 amendments to the definition of solid waste under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). American Petroleum Institute v. EPA (D.C. Cir. No. 09-1038). The Court invalidated Factor 4 of the legitimacy […]
The four companies, Benjamin Moore & Co., Inc., ICP Construction Inc., YOLO Colorhouse, LLC, and Imperial Paints, LLC, agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission (FTC) allegations that they promoted products as emission-free or containing zero volatile organic compounds (VOCs) during and immediately after painting without having adequate substantiation for making those claims. Some advertisements from […]
Clean Air Act Section 109(d) requires EPA to review national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) at least every 5 years, and revise them if newly available information indicates that the existing standards are not adequate to protect public health and welfare. The last EPA review of the primary (health based) NAAQS for nitrogen oxides (NOx) […]
On May 22, 2017, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt created a task force to improve the Superfund remediation process. He asked the Superfund task force to find ways to “utilize alternative and non-traditional approaches for financing site cleanups.” The task force’s recommendations were due by June 21, 2017. EPA has not yet announced its recommendations. Creation […]
The Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) is a chartered Federal Advisory Committee, and was established pursuant to the Clean Air Act (CAA) to provide advice, information, and recommendations to the EPA Administrator on the scientific and technical aspects of air quality criteria and National Ambient Air Quality Standards. Members of the CASAC include non-EPA […]
On June 22, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released pre-publication Federal Register notices of the final framework actions under the new Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act. The final rules include: The Inventory Reset Rule (AKA the Active-Inactive Rule), which requires industry to […]
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), the workplace research arm of the federal Centers for Disease Control, recently has taken two actions likely to lead to much lower occupational exposure recommendations for known or suspected carcinogens. First, in December 2016, the agency finalized its new Carcinogen Policy. The new policy provides “that […]
The National Advertising Division (NAD), of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, recommended that Kauai Coffee Company, LLC, discontinue certain environmental-benefits claims for the company’s single-serve coffee pods. In addition, NAD found that the company’s webpage fails to meet FTC Green Guide requirements for advertising claims. The NAD decision recommends that Kauai Coffee company discontinue […]
EPA recently approved a new chemical additive subject to the conditions of the polymer exemption criteria. The Agency found that the chemical substance is “not likely to present an unreasonable risk” under TSCA (5(a)(3)(C)), so long as it meets the requirements of the polymer exemption as described under 40 CFR §723.250(e)(1). Specifically the Agency found […]
The EPA reopened its consultation with the public regarding the definition of “small manufacturer” and “small processor” under the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, which amends the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). TSCA, as amended, requires EPA to review the size standards for small manufacturers and processors, which are currently […]