Green Chemistry Is The Path To Chemical Safety

Co-authored by Glynis Lough On June 22nd, the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act was signed into law, bringing the first legislative reform to chemical management regulation in 40 years! From car seats to zippers, nearly every product in and out of the home has the potential to change because of this bill - meaning your favorite toy or cooking pan could be reformulated because chemicals toxic to human health are used in the production.  And the bill also includes special protections for women's and children's health. Sound great?  Sort of.  The reality of the bill is that it's a mixed bag - only twenty chemicals of the thousands and thousands that are actually used in consumer goods are required to be tested per year, and there's a 64,000 backlog - but with increased authority, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) can prevent new problems from entering the market. That means that real effort is needed to make this bill more than just public relations. To be sure, there are some good things in this bill, such as setting new safety standards for chemicals with ties to cancer, mental health, and infertility and allowing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to obtain more information about a chemical before approving its use. We need more action to pollute less. What this really means is that we need to find other ways to protect people and the environment from the chemicals that we routinely use, like dry cleaning solvents, and this i...
Source: Science - The Huffington Post - Category: Science Source Type: news