December 4, 2024
Dr. Tom Lewandowski was featured recently in Inside EPA’s Inside TSCA, commenting on the contributions industry can make to help improve US EPA’s approach to alternatives assessment under TSCA.
Dr. Tom Lewandowski was featured in the November 20, 2024, edition of Inside EPA’s Inside TSCA, which provides news and analysis on the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The article summarizes a webinar co-presented with lawyer Sarah Amick of the law firm Wiley Rein on the status of alternatives assessment under different regulatory programs. In particular, the article addresses some concerns that US EPA’s TSCA process has failed to fully analyze and identify suitable alternatives for some chemicals undergoing regulatory review. The article notes that industry groups are challenging TSCA assessments, stating that the US EPA’s current approach to alternatives assessment merely scratches the surface in determining if alternatives for a certain chemical “are available,” leaving a need for more comprehensive information regarding the suitability of an alternative as an effective substitute for a chemical’s various uses.
Dr. Lewandowski highlighted alternatives assessment requirements and programs under TSCA and in states such as California and Washington, and emphasized the benefits of industry in leading, or at least providing technical input on, regulatory-driven alternatives assessments. Responding to a question from Inside TSCA, he stated, “greater attention on whether an alternative can actually perform is going to be worthwhile and that’s where industry has a lot to contribute . . . especially for complex products, or products with complex uses. The folks in industry are the ones that have the knowledge about whether something works and why, right? I think that’s where the EPA process could be improved, to get that sort of input on the performance side of things.”
Read the article here.
For more information on Gradient’s alternatives assessment and TSCA services, please reach out to Gradient.
Contact:
Tom Lewandowski, Ph.D., DABT, ERT, ATS
Principal
Tom.Lewandowski@gradientcorp.com