In June 2016, President Barack Obama signed the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act into law as an amendment to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the U.S.’s primary chemical management law. It marked the first time American chemical regulatory law had been updated in nearly 40 years.
As part of the first 10 chemicals to be evaluated under the reform act, asbestos, known to cause mesothelioma, a rare, fatal cancer that normally affects the lining of the lungs and abdomen, is set to finally be evaluated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to determine its risk to humans and potentially be further regulated or banned. Despite well studied health risks, the use of the carcinogenic group of minerals has continued due to legal red tape, MyMeso previously reported.
While the change of presidential administrations and political parties caused — and perhaps continues to cause — some to question the Act’s future, the EPA seems to be moving forward with its initial plan. Last week the agency held a public meeting on use information for the first 10 chemicals to be evaluated under the Act — a step toward the creation of scoping documents for each of the chemicals. (more…)