TSCA reform
Will EPA Finally Ban Asbestos?
A look at the risks the substance presents, efforts to ban its continued use in the United States, and the role of TSCA reforms
Today millions of people will tune in to watch the first 2016 Presidential Debate. I’m popping the popcorn for what promises to be quite the spectacle! But while the debate takes center stage, other events make today significant as well. Most important for me, September 26th marks the 12th annual Mesothelioma Awareness Day in the …
Continue reading “Will EPA Finally Ban Asbestos?”
CONTINUE READINGNewsflash: Senate Passes TSCA Reform
A New Chapter In the Effort To Reform Federal Chemical Regulation For the First Time in 40 Years
In a striking turn of events, last night the Senate passed a newly revised version of the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, which would reform the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for the first time in four decades. A summary of the bill’s provisions and analysis of the differences between …
Continue reading “Newsflash: Senate Passes TSCA Reform”
CONTINUE READINGThe Unreasonable Risk of TSCA Reform
Caught Between a Rock and a Hard Place
The Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act is no doubt generating significant conflict, including claims of undue industry influence, competing bills from prominent members of the same party, consternation among states, and divisions among health and environmental groups. And it may also be the closest we have gotten to TSCA reform—ever. …
Continue reading “The Unreasonable Risk of TSCA Reform”
CONTINUE READINGTSCA Reform: That’s A Good Thing, Right?
Reform of the federal chemicals statute, the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), is in the news again. It got me wondering, are we are better off with the devil we know? In a legislative era characterized by harsh partisanship and excruciating deadlocks, there are signs that TSCA reform could be a rare example of cooperation …
Continue reading “TSCA Reform: That’s A Good Thing, Right?”
CONTINUE READINGMick Jagger on Chemical Reform
Vermont’s new chemical program looks to be a mixed bag
Vermont just joined the posse of states taking chemical regulation reform into their own hands in the face of inaction in Congress. Last week the Green Mountain State enacted a new law covering chemicals in children’s products. (A children’s product is defined as “any consumer product, marketed for use by, marketed to, sold, offered for …
Continue reading “Mick Jagger on Chemical Reform”
CONTINUE READINGHappy Birthday, TSCA!
With the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) celebrating its 37th birthday today, I was thinking what we should get it as a birthday gift. Here’s one idea; how about a little respect. I’ve blogged before about how the statute has become one of the most denigrated environmental laws on the books. It seems that every …
Continue reading “Happy Birthday, TSCA!”
CONTINUE READINGIs TSCA Reform on the Way?
The Toxic Substances Control Act or TSCA (sometimes pronounced “Tosca,” like the opera) is one of the worst-written statutes of all time. It seems as if every section contains a cross-reference to another section, which in turn requires recourse to yet another sentence to be understood, making the statute completely opaque. A last-minute compromise, the …
Continue reading “Is TSCA Reform on the Way?”
CONTINUE READINGBottles and cans, bisphenol-A, and chemical regulation
The online magazine Yale Environment 360 has published an informative and rather frightening interview with Frederick vom Saal, a biologist at the University of Missouri’s Endocrine Disruptors Group, about bisphenol-A and what he sees as a completely broken regulatory system for managing hazards from chemicals. Elizabeth Kolbert, known recently for her stellar journalism in the New …
Continue reading “Bottles and cans, bisphenol-A, and chemical regulation”
CONTINUE READINGToxic Chemicals (2)
This is the second of a series of three posts on toxic chemicals. On Monday, I discussed a recent paper that appraised the shortcomings of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Today, I turn to a paper by David Adelman (University of Texas) proposing some reforms. First, Adelman suggests that the U.S. follow the EU …
Continue reading “Toxic Chemicals (2)”
CONTINUE READINGWhat’s Really Wrong With TSCA?
As Dan Farber discussed in his recent post, David Markell ‘s recent paper on TSCA provides some really interesting history. John Applegate has some fascinating pieces on the history and future of TSCA as well–well worth the read also. I thought it was curious that Dan focused on cost-benefit barriers imposed by the courts as being the obstacle to effective risk regulation, …
Continue reading “What’s Really Wrong With TSCA?”
CONTINUE READINGJoin Our Mailing List
Climate policy is changing rapidly. Stay in the loop with expert analysis via email Monday - Friday.
