US tightens chemicals and smog legislation
[ added 8 January, 2010 ]
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The US is revising safety of chemicals legislation. The US competent body is also taking action to limit the effects of ground-level ozone, whose formation is suspected to be accelerated by the latest generation of HFCs.
Recent policy developments in the US demonstrate the intention of regulators to implement rules addressing environmental and health risks from exposure to chemicals and hence ensure their safety. Chemical refrigerants fall in the scope of the intended rules.Strengthening chemical management in the US
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced a series of actions on four chemicals (phthalates, short-chain chlorinated paraffins, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and perfluorinated chemicals) raising serious health or environmental concerns.
Already in September 2009, US EPA administrator Lisa Jackson announced the release of a set of Essential Principles for Reform of Chemicals Management Legislation for a fist time in a generation. These principles are intended to significanlty strengthen the effectiveness of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), designed back in 1976 to protect trade secrets in a highly competitive chemistry industry. However, secrecy has grown out of control, hence why federal review of the dangers of these substances is now justified.
Stricter standards for smog caused from the latest generation of HFCs
The EPA proposed in January 2010 the strictest health standards to date for ground-level ozone, also known as smog, which is linked to a number of serious health problems.
The EPA has also proposed to list the chemical substance HFO-1234yf as an acceptable refrigerant in motor vehicle air conditioning systems. Olefins contained in HFO are, however, suspected to accelerate the formation of ground-level ozone. The approval of HFO could, therefore, undermine the agency’s efforts to reduce smog.
BeyondHFCs hopes for a rapid course of change in the US that will result in the chemical products being monitored more closely and their assessment methods becoming more transparent and consistent with other policies. BeyondHFCs invites the US EPA to carefully assess the latest generation of HFCs. These are likely to contribute to the formation of smog, which is an effect that the agency seeks to limit.
