OLYMPIA – A group of state environmental leaders from California, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Vermont, Washington, and the Environmental Council of the States (ECOS) today praised Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-New Jersey and Sen. James M. Inhofe, R-Oklahoma, for conducting a hearing to help advance legislation that updates the 35-year-old Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
TSCA is the primary federal environmental law that regulates the safety of the tens of thousands of chemicals used every day in the United States. Over the past several months leaders from industry, government and environmental groups have been working with the Senate to forge a major federal overhaul.

“I believe there has never been such broad agreement that TSCA needs to be fixed,” said Ted Sturdevant, Director of the Washington State Department of Ecology. “States urge Congress to establish a strong federal system that ensures the safety of chemicals in commerce.”

In the absence of an effective federal chemical safety law, states have stepped in to protect people and the environment. During the past eight years, 18 states have passed bipartisan supported legislation ranging from comprehensive chemical safety laws to bans on specific high-risk chemicals. For example, California recently joined 10 other states in banning Bisphenol A (BPA) from baby bottles and sippy cups.

“Federal leadership of chemical regulation policy is essential,” said Debbie Raphael, Director of California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control, part of the California Environmental Protection Agency. “While California is paving the way in terms of seeking alternatives for toxic chemicals in consumer products, we need a strong effort on a national scale, and we applaud this bipartisan effort.”

But most states do not have the capacity or expertise to set up individual chemical management programs to deal with the unintended consequences of problem chemicals in commerce. Of particular concern are the cleanup costs resulting from persistent bioaccumulative toxics, known as PBTs.

“Michigan strongly supports this legislative reform because states do not have the resources to develop 50 individual state chemical management plans across the country,” said Michigan Department of Environmental Quality Director Dan Wyant. “In Michigan, we are working to be leaders in green chemistry – creating new products and economic opportunities that make a difference in people’s lives.”

“The Environmental Council of the States supports TSCA reform and has articulated the points that the states believe need to be addressed in three resolutions adopted by the state environmental agencies’ leaders,” said Tom Burack, ECOS President and Commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services. “We are pleased to see bi-partisan interest in making improvements to this law, and look forward to working with Congress and others to achieve them.”

State legislatures have been active during the 2011 state legislative season. For example, New York is the first state to ban the use of “Chlorinated Tris” or tris(2-chloroethly) phosphate in children’s goods starting in 2013, and Connecticut is the nation’s first state to ban BPA from thermal paper in cash register receipts. State legislatures meeting in 2012 are expected to continue addressing toxic chemical concerns.

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Media Contacts:

Kathy Davis, Ecology media relations, 360-407-6149, kathy.davis@ecy.wa.gov

Ken Zarker, Hazardous Waste and Toxics Reduction, 360-407-6724, ken.zarker@ecy.wa.gov

State Environmental Contacts:

Ted Sturdevant, Director, Washington State Department of Ecology; 360-407-7001

Jim Marxen, California Environmental Protection Agency; 916- 324-6544

Jay Apperson, Maryland Department of Environment; 410-537-3012
Thomas Burack (Tom), ECOS President, New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services; 603-271-2958
Dan Wyant, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality; 517-373-7919
Paul W. Aasen, Commissioner, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency; 651-757-2016

David Mears, Commissioner, Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation; 802-241-3808

For more information: Ecology’s Chemical Policy website: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/toxics/policy.htm

Ecology’s website: http://www.ecy.wa.gov

Ecology’s social media: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/about/newmedia.html

U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee: archived webcast: http://epw.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Hearings.Hearing&Hearing_id=a2714f34-802a-23ad-4b23-3ba5732a0172

Written by NPPR · Filed Under News |

P2Profile 2011

October 1, 2011

Year in Review: P2Profile 2011 (PDF)

Written by NPPR · Filed Under P2PROFILE |

March 2011 - EPA-State P2 Dialogue

April 18, 2011

NPPR recently facilitated a dialigue between the U.S. EPA Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics and state pollution prevention programs. To learn more about this meeting check out the meeting summary.

Written by NPPR · Filed Under News |

State and Local Governments Form Interstate Chemicals Clearinghouse to Promote Toxics Reduction

January 28, 2011

BOSTON - Environmental officials from 10 state and local governments announced today that they have formed an umbrella organization - the Interstate Chemicals Clearinghouse (IC2) - to promote a clean environment, healthy communities, and a vital economy through the development and use of safer chemicals and products. The goals of the IC2 are to:

· Avoid duplication and enhance efficiency and effectiveness of state, local, and tribal initiatives on chemicals through collaboration and coordination

· Build agency capacity to identify and promote safer chemicals and products

· Ensure that state, local, and tribal agencies, businesses, and the public have ready access to high quality and authoritative chemicals data, information, and assessment methods

Launched under the auspices of the Northeast Waste Management Officials’ Association (NEWMOA), the new Clearinghouse:

· Supports state, local, and tribal health and environmental agencies with development and implementation of programs to promote use of safer chemicals and products

· Supports the development of alternative assessment methods and identification of safer alternatives

· Shares data and information on chemical use, hazard, exposure, and alternatives

· Shares strategies and outcomes on chemicals prioritization initiatives

· Builds the capacity of agencies by sharing materials, strategies, and trainings

· Assists agencies in meeting the relevant information needs of businesses, consumers, and the public

The current IC2 Members have signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) supporting the principles of the IC2 and formed a Board of Directors to oversee the Clearinghouse’s activities. They are inviting additional governmental entities, businesses, non-governmental organizations, academic researchers, consultants, and others to join them in the partnership.

According to Director Ted Sturdevant of the Washington Department of Ecology, “for several years many state and local environmental agencies have been working aggressively to reduce toxic chemicals in consumer products as part of a larger effort to reduce toxics in the environment and protect human health. In the absence of an effective national system for securing and sharing data on toxic chemicals, states are working together to share information and make the most of limited resources.”

Oregon Department of Environmental Quality’s Director Dick Pedersen notes that reducing toxic chemicals in the environment is a top priority for environmental organizations nationwide. “IC2 allows us to leverage state and local resources to be more efficient, effective, and strategic in reducing toxic chemicals regionally and nationally,” said Pedersen. “This interstate work is also inter-agency work here in Oregon, and a key opportunity to work together to protect Oregonians from potential harm from chemical exposures,” added Gail Shibley, Administrator, Oregon Health Authority, Office of Environmental Public Health.

Members of IC2 as of January 26, 2011:

· California Environmental Protection Agency

· Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection

· Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection

· Michigan Department of Environmental Quality

· Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

· New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection

· New York Department of Environmental Conservation

· Oregon Department of Environmental Quality & Oregon Health Authority

· METRO Regional Government (Portland, OR)

· Washington Department of Ecology

NEWMOA is a non-profit, non-partisan interstate association made up of environmental agency directors from the hazardous waste, solid waste, waste site cleanup, pollution prevention, and underground storage tank programs in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Its mission is to help states articulate, promote, and implement economically sound regional programs for the enhancement of environmental protection.

Reporters/Editors Note: Additional information about IC2 can be found on the Web at http://www.newmoa.org/prevention/ic2/.

Written by NPPR · Filed Under News |

Presentations, Videos from State-EPA Environmental Innovation Symposium Available Online

January 4, 2011

Presentations and videos from the Fifth State-EPA Environmental Innovation Symposium, held in Madison, Wisconsin, from November 1-4, 2010, are now available online for viewing and/or downloading.

Links to videos and presentations from plenary speakers are available on the symposium’s Agenda page:

http://environmental-symposium.org/2010/agenda.html

Links to all other videos and presentations are available on the Sessions page:

http://environmental-symposium.org/2010/sessions.html

The theme of the 2010 symposium was Environmental Protection for a Changing Climate and Greener Economy. Topics included green products, green workforce development, green government, clean energy, innovative financing, sustainable and resilient communities, strategies to address multiple pollutants at once, turning liabilities into assets, innovating in regulatory activities, and more.

State and local officials interested in additional information about developing and implementing cost-effective climate and energy strategies that help further environmental goals and achieve public health and economic benefits may visit: http://www.epa.gov/statelocalclimate

Written by NPPR · Filed Under News |

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