Regulatory Review: March–April 2024
Trudy Watson-Leung, Bugsrock Environmental Consulting
This digest provides an overview of some of the latest regulatory news announcements of interest to the SETAC community. Please send your suggestions to [email protected].
Australia
The Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) is seeking feedback by 17 April on the draft National Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs) Framework. The framework will ensure high-quality conserved areas are recognized in Australia.
Brazil
The Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA) plans to create and maintain the Environmental Recovery Monitoring Platform (Recooperar) that will track lands that are contaminated, deforested or degraded and subject to decontamination or recovery.
China
The China Ministry of Ecology and Environment selection of the second batch of national ecological quality comprehensive monitoring stations for the national ecological quality monitoring network was officially launched and with application materials due before 20 April.
Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) and Health Canada (HC)
The public, stakeholders and partners are invited to comment on Health Canada's Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) Framework for Pesticide Water Monitoring Programs by 6 May.
Canadian federal environmental quality guidelines for Triclocarban and amended “Guidelines for the Reduction of Dyes Released from Pulp and Paper Mills” were published.
Public comments are being sought by 15 May on the draft assessment for the low boiling point naphthas group and the risk management scope for Low Boiling Point Naphthas Group (LBPNs) Subgroups 1–3.
The Final Assessment for Thallium and its compounds and the Risk Management Approach for Thallium and its Compounds were published for a public comment period ending 29 May.
United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA)
The USEPA issued the first national, legally enforceable drinking water standard to protect communities from exposure to harmful per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The announcement complements President Biden’s government-wide action plan to combat PFAS pollution.
The USEPA announced a “Final Rule to Strengthen Standards for Synthetic Organic Chemical Plants and Polymers and Resins Plants” that will significantly reduce emissions of toxic air pollution from chemical plants, including the potent air toxics ethylene oxide (EtO) and chloroprene.
The Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Validation of Alternative Methods (ICCVAM) Validation Workgroup released a report presenting a flexible approach to help ensure the adoption of alternative methods by federal agencies and regulated industries once validated for a specific application or context of use.
The USEPA released a final report detailing the “Standard Methods for Development of EPA Transcriptomic Assessment Products (ETAPs)” to provide transcriptomic-based reference values (TRV). In addition, reports on scientific studies supporting the development of transcriptomic points of departure for ETAP and the dataset for transcriptomic studies on perfluoro-3-methoxypropanoic acid were published.