On June 13, 2023, the Strengthening Environmental Protection for a Healthier Canada Act received royal assent. The act, which revises Canada’s toxic substances law and enshrines a right to a healthy environment, is the first significant revision to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) since its passage in 1999. The act implements some, but not […]
On May 31, 2023, EPA published a final rule exempting two categories of plant-incorporated protectants (PIPs) created using genetic engineering from certain Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) registration requirements and from food or feed residue tolerance requirements under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA). In addition to reducing regulatory burden, EPA […]
EPA has released a summary of its findings from a test of 10 pesticide products that reportedly contained PFAS. While a previous study in the Journal of Hazardous Materials detected PFAS in over half of these pesticide products, EPA’s laboratory concluded that PFAS substances were not present. EPA’s study employed two different testing methods. The […]
This May, the American Chemical Society published a new study evaluating the presence of toxic chemicals in consumer products. The study found use of at least one chemical known to the state of California to cause cancer, reproductive issues, and/or developmental issues in over one hundred types of consumer products. The study’s authors used data […]
This April, EPA’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program highlighted eight companies supported by the program that are developing technologies to detect, assess, and treat PFAS in the environment. Of the eight companies, seven are pioneering technologies to remove PFAS from water, wastewater, and/or other liquids. They utilize a variety of technological methods: Onvector LLC […]
The European Commission has released implementation dates for new hazard classes introduced by an amendment to the Classification, Labelling, and Packaging of Substances and Mixtures Regulation. The new hazard classes are as follows: Endocrine disruption for human health (ED HH) in category 1 and category 2 Endocrine disruption for the environment (ED ENV) in category […]
Last month, the Biden Administration announced “new bold goals and priorities” to promote American biotechnology and biomanufacturing. The announcement comes after a September 2022 executive order intended to bolster biotechnological innovation. “Biomanufacturing – or the use of biological systems to produce goods and services at commercial scale – has the potential to drive new sustainable […]
