July 13, 2007 — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has just released several documents relating to its Nanoscale Materials Stewardship Program, and is inviting public comment on them.
In October 2006, the EPA held a scientific peer consultation on risk management practices for nanoscale materials, and also launched a process to design, develop, and implement a Nanoscale Materials Stewardship Program (NMSP) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The agency envisions that the NMSP will complement and support EPA’s chemical programs under TSCA and, “help provide a firm scientific foundation for regulatory decisions by encouraging the development of key scientific information and contribute to an improved understanding of risk management practices for nanoscale chemical substances (nanoscale materials).” EPA says it has been working collaboratively with other federal agencies and stakeholders to inform the development of the NMSP.
Depending on the results of the NMSP development process, EPA envisions that the stewardship program could include:
- Assembling existing data and information from manufacturers and processors of existing chemical nanoscale materials;
- Encouraging the development of test data needed to provide a firm scientific foundation for future work and regulatory/policy decisions; and
- Identifying and encouraging use of a basic set of risk management practices in developing and commercializing nanoscale materials.
During a public meeting on August 2, 2007, in Arlington, Virginia, the agency will solicit comments on the NMSP. In addition, the EPA is planning another scientific peer consultation regarding material characterization as it relates to nanoscale material for the fall of 2007, and a conference on the pollution prevention benefits of nanotechnology in September.
The agency is creating an email list to notify interested parties about the stewardship program as it moves forward. Even if you signed on to this list before you may want to renew your efforts, as a technical problem prevented the agency from confirming people signing on in the fall of 2006 and early 2007.