DTSC announces draft Priority Products under Safer Consumer Products program.

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This morning, California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) revealed its highly anticipated draft list [PDF] of Priority Products, a key step in rolling out agency’s new Safer Consumer Products (SCP) regulations.

As expected, the draft list is composed of three products. The products are:

  • Children’s foam padded sleep products containing TDCPP (chlorinated TRIS);
  • Spray Polyurethane Foam (SPF) systems containing unreacted diisocyanates; and
  • Paint and varnish strippers and surface cleaners containing methylene chloride.

The agency chose these products because they are widely used and contain at least one Candidate Chemical that has the potential to cause serious harm to human health or the environment. According to DTSC, all three of the products are known to cause serious health effects in humans, including cancer, severe asthma, and neurotoxicity. People who are at risk from these products include children and daycare workers in the case of foam sleeping products, and independent contractors, workers, and Do-It-Yourselfers in the case of SPF systems and paint strippers. Alternatives in the marketplace exist for children’s sleeping products and paint/varnish strippers and surface cleaners; however, DTSC officials said they were not aware of any spray-application alternatives for SPFs, which will present “a challenge for manufacturers.”

DTSC’s action today does not ban the products; rather, it starts an extended process that will include formal rulemaking procedures for the finalization of the Priority Products list, which may take up to a year. Next steps include DTSC’s quarterly public meeting on March 17; public workshops on the selection of the draft Priority Products, expected to be held in May and June; and a Work Plan to be released in October. After the final Priority Products list is finalized, manufacturers and sellers of Priority Products must notify DTSC that they are a “responsible entity,” and then submit a preliminary Alternatives Analysis (AA) report for state approval. A final AA report must be submitted a year later, after which DTSC will determine its regulatory response, which may range from requiring further research to imposing an outright ban on sales in California.

Moreover, DTSC intends that the SCP program will spur manufacturers and retailers to proactively reformulate products containing Candidate Chemicals. DTSC director Debbie Raphael emphasized that the measure of the success of the program would be the ability and willingness of product manufacturers to answer the question, “Is it necessary to use this chemical?” before the agency names a particular chemical-product combination.

For more information, see DTSC’s FAQ on the draft Priority Products [PDF] and press release [PDF].

DTSC spring quarterly meeting will address Safer Consumer Products.

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Officials from California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) will discuss the Safer Consumer Products program and Priority Products at the agency’s upcoming Quarterly Public Meeting. DTSC recently posted the agenda [PDF] online, but more detailed presentation and supporting materials are not yet available. At the agency’s last quarterly public meeting [PDF], held in December, officials estimated that draft Priority Products would be identified before April 2014 and draft Alternatives Analysis guidance would be released in spring 2014.

In addition to Safer Consumer Products, other topics to be addressed at the meeting include DTSC’s proposed budget for 2014-15; an update on the ongoing permit program review; and an update on the agency’s work on cost recovery. The meeting will be held on March 17, 2014, at 9 a.m. in the Sierra Room of the Cal/EPA Building in Sacramento.

Members of California’s second Green Ribbon Science Panel announced.

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Yesterday, California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) announced the appointment of 15 members to the newly reconstituted Green Ribbon Science Panel. The appointments include reappointed members from the first panel as well as new members. Panel members include experts on public and environmental health as well as chemicals policy, law, and engineering, and are drawn from academia, NGOs, industry, and government. As we previously discussed, the Panel advises DTSC on green chemistry and chemicals policy issues, including implementation of the Safer Consumer Products regulations.

A Green Ribbon Science Panel Webinar Meeting will be held January 29, 2014. More information from DTSC will be posted online in the near future.

DTSC releases strategic plan.

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California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) plans to focus on improving departmental operations while addressing health and safety issues through a variety of new and continuing initiatives to reduce hazardous waste and toxic substances. In late December, DTSC released its Strategic Plan for 2014-2018: Fixing the Foundation – Building a Path Forward, [PDF] which lays out approaches and specific objectives for five broad goals: Cleanup, Hazardous Waste Management, Safer Consumer Products, Support Services, and Public Engagement.

DTSC’s approach to achieving its Hazardous Waste Management objectives includes holding businesses accountable for costs associated with regulation and cleanup, maximizing enforcement reach, and improving data quality and transparency. Notably, the plan calls for reforming the agency’s hazardous waste fee system by making fees “fairer” and in line with the goals of source reduction, recycling, polluter-pays principle, and in-state management. Following an external review of the agency’s permit program, DTSC plans to work on ensuring that permits are protective, timely, and enforceable, and also that enforcement is effective, efficient, and consistent. The agency hopes to improve public confidence in this area through a range of different efforts, including making the “enforcement program’s information and processes more accessible to the public” and launching an IT system that “improves the availability and accuracy of hazardous waste tracking data” for both the agency and the public. Other Hazardous Waste Management objectives include: working with Cal/EPA to train and evaluate local authorities responsible for enforcing hazardous waste laws at the local level; expanding DTSC’s capacity to respond to natural disasters and chemical emergencies; and assessing the classification of metal shredder waste.

The agency’s approach to its newly-launched Safer Consumer Products (SCP) program includes: changing how products are designed and manufactured; avoiding product redesigns that result in “regrettable substitutes”; holding manufacturers responsible for the life cycle impacts of their products; and increasing public access to data on chemicals in consumer products while protecting trade secret information. First among its objectives for the SCP program is the adoption of the initial list of Priority Products and development of guidance documents for Alternatives Analysis. DTSC also plans to develop a data system to support implementation of the SCP regulations and provide information tools for manufacturers and consumers on chemical hazard traits and exposures.

More information on DTSC’s “Fixing the Foundation” initiative is available in Director Debbie Raphael’s online message.

California accepting applications for second Green Ribbon Science Panel.

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California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) is currently accepting applications to serve on the Green Ribbon Science Panel. Members of the Panel come from both the private and public sectors and are experts in a variety of fields, including chemistry, public health, risk analysis, and materials science. The Panel draws on its scientific and technical expertise in advising the DTSC as well as the California Environmental Policy Council on various green chemistry and chemicals policy issues. The first Panel was assembled in 2009 and advised DTSC on developing the Safer Consumer Products regulations which just went into effect last month. Moving forward, the new Green Ribbon Science Panel will address implementation of the Safer Consumer Products program.

The deadline for applications is this Friday, November 15, 2013.