Parties to the Convention adopt changes to place plastic waste under the Prior Informed Consent procedure; requires plastic waste exporters to obtain permission from importing countries
Draft CLARITY-BPA report published
U.S. National Toxicology Program releases draft report on CLARITY-BPA study; deadline for comments is April 12, 2018; meeting for peer-review scheduled for April 26, 2018
Debut of ‘Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act’ in U.S.
U.S. senators and representatives present wide-ranging bill to address plastic pollution; aims to extend producer responsibility, implement nationwide container refund system, phase out single-use plastic items, increase minimum recycled content
Hearing on predictive toxicology roadmap
FDA holds public hearing on its predictive toxicology roadmap, September 12, 2018; registration open until August 29, 2018; comments accepted after hearing until October 12, 2018
Opinion: Plastic recycling a ‘false promise’
Engineer estimates U.S. plastic recycling rate below 5% in 2018, calls for ‘real solutions’ to plastic pollution such as reduced production of single-use plastics, implementation of deposit schemes
Action and inaction on PFAS in the US federal government
Earthjustice files petition asking US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to revoke approval of 600 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) allowed on the market under exemptions of the Toxic Substances Control Act; represents about half the number of PFAS on the market; EPA extends reach of guidelines for federal purchasing of PFAS-free products; Food and Drug Administration funding bill stripped of reform amendments including federal ban on PFAS in food packaging
Detecting BPA in food
European Commission Joint Research Centre develops analytical methods for determining BPA and 12 similar substances in food
JRC: 2018 report on alternatives to animal testing
Joint Research Centre publishes annual 2018 report on ‘recent achievements and future plans’ in the field of development and regulatory acceptance of alternative approaches to animal testing
Further reactions to EU EDC criteria adoption
Denmark and Sweden maintain that EDC criteria require too high burden of proof; France promises tougher national controls on EDCs; Endocrine Society calls on EU Parliament to ‘gather input’ from endocrine scientists
P&P conference 2018
Smithers Pira’s annual conference on “Plastics & paper in contact with foodstuffs” covers regulatory updates, summarizes industry initiatives, discusses future developments