California’s Green Chemistry Initiative has taken another step forward with the issuance of guidance on the heart of the law, the analysis of safer substitutes for chemicals in consumer products. On September 24, 2015, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) released its Draft Stage 1 Alternatives Analysis Guide (Guide) under its Safer Consumer Products (SCP) Program. This is the first of two stages of the alternative analysis process released in draft for public comment. The second stage is scheduled to be released during the first quarter of 2016. The DTSC also added three new chemicals to its candidate list.
The Guide is not issued as a regulation and does not have the force of law. Rather, it is designed to provide more details from the DTSC about the general process for conducting an alternative analysis for a variety of responsible entities and a diverse set of product types. The Guide also does not provide a single, specific approach for that analysis. Instead, the responsible entity must decide which approaches, assumptions, tools, methodologies, data, and decision frameworks will best suit its particular situation.
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