On December 20, 2019, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it has finalized the set of 20 high-priority substances that will undergo risk evaluations under the amended Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The set of substances “consist[s] of seven chlorinated solvents, six phthalates, four flame retardants, formaldehyde, a fragrance additive, and a polymer precursor.” Of these, the following are included in the FACET inventory of food contact chemicals:
- p-dichlorobenzene (CAS 106-46-7)
- dibutyl phthalate (DBP) (CAS 84-74-2)
- butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP) (CAS 85-68-7)
- di-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) (CAS 117-81-7)
- di-isobutyl phthalate (DIBP) (CAS 84-69-5)
- dicyclohexyl phthalate (CAS 84-61-7)
- 4,4′-(1-methylethylidene)bis[2, 6-dibromophenol] (TBBPA) (CAS 79-94-7)
- tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP) (CAS 115-96-8)
- phosphoric acid, triphenyl ester (TPP) (CAS 115-86-6)
- ethylene dibromide (CAS 106-99-0)
- formaldehyde (CAS 50-00-0)
- phthalic anhydride (CAS 85-44-9)
A next step in the evaluation process for these substances includes a public comment period on scoping documents that outlines the “hazards, exposures, conditions of use, and the potentially exposed or susceptible subpopulations EPA expects to consider during each chemical’s risk evaluation.” The scoping documents are set to be finalized by June 2020. The agency also informed that it is still reviewing public comments received on the proposed set of 20 low-priority substances for evaluation announced in August 2019, and it expects to finalize this set in “early 2020.”
The EPA has also reviewed submitted pre-manufacture notifications (PMN) and identified a set of substances “not likely to present an unreasonable risk.” Upon notification by the EPA of this finding, manufacturers are allowed to begin manufacturing the substances for the uses described in the PMN. Of these substances announced between September and December 2019, none are included in the FACET inventory of food contact chemicals.
Read More
EPA (December 20, 2019). “EPA Finalizes List of Next 20 Chemicals to Undergo Risk Evaluation under TSCA.”
EPA (December 2019). “Chemicals Determined Not Likely to Present an Unreasonable Risk Following Pre-Manufacture Notification Review.”
Kelly Franklin (December 20, 2019). “EPA finalises next 20 substances to be evaluated under TSCA.” Chemical Watch
Chemical Watch (January 3, 2020). “EPA issues TSCA ‘not likely’ findings for 20 substances.”
