Consumer Product Update - California's Green Chemistry Initiative Looks for New Products to Regulate

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On October 6, 2017, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) announced it is seeking public comment on its new 2018-2020 Priority Product Work Plan (Work Plan) under its Safer Consumer Products (SCP) Program. The SCP Program, also known as the California Green Chemistry Initiative, is an innovative regulatory scheme to evaluate and seek safer substitutes for hazardous chemicals in consumer products.  

DTSC seeks public input to evaluate whether certain product/chemical combinations will be targeted for future inclusion in the SCP Program. The candidates under consideration are:

  • Beauty/Personal Care/Hygiene:  Nail products containing 21 chemicals, including formaldehyde, toluene and dibutyl phthalate (DBP).
  • Cleaning Products:  Laundry detergent, commercial and household cleaners and dish soap containing nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEs) and triclosan.
  • Household/Office Furniture/Furnishings:  Carpets, rugs and upholstery and their associated care and treatment products containing perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs).
  • Lead-Acid Batteries: containing lead, arsenic and sulfuric acid. 

Some of these products were the subject of DTSC’s prior work plan and are suggested to be carried over for inclusion in the new Work Plan.

DTSC requests the public provide comments regarding the above candidates and recommendations as to other product/chemical combinations for regulation, along with supporting documentation including:

  • A description of the product category under consideration and some examples of specific products that fall within the category.
  • A description of any candidate chemical(s) contained in the product category if known (DTSC may only designate those products that contain a candidate chemical as Priority Products).
  • Any information supporting a recommendation to consider a product category for the Work Plan (e.g., hazard information for chemicals contained in the product category, exposure information, sales volume for the product category in California, availability of alternatives, etc.)

With DTSC in the early stages of developing the Work Plan, stakeholders and other potentially regulated parties should consider engaging in the process now. Once the final Work Plan is released, it may be too late to effectively participate in the process of defining the scope and extent of important parts of any new regulations.

DTSC is accepting public comments on the Work Plan until November 6, 2017.  Related useful information can be found on the Green Chemistry portal web page at https://www.mofo.com/green-chemistry.

Lois Miyashiro, an environmental analyst in the firm’s San Francisco office, assisted in the preparation of this client alert.

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