California's Green Chemistry Regulations Formally Adopted And Approved

On August 28, the California Office of Administrative Law approved the "Safer Chemical Products" regulations developed by the California Department of Toxic Substances Control ("DTSC"). The regulations will take effect on October 1. The regulations implement California's "Green Chemistry" law adopted by the Legislature in 2008 (Cal. Health & Safety Code §§ 25215-25257.1). The statute directs DTSC to identify and prioritize chemical ingredients in consumer products that may be chemicals of concern, and to determine how best to limit or reduce the potential hazards posed by such chemicals. The final regulations are the culmination of several prior drafts and public comment periods. The final regulations apply to consumer products that are placed into the stream of commerce in California. They establish a three-step process. Under the first step, DTSC will identify "candidate" chemicals of concern and identify and prioritize products containing candidate chemicals. Under the second step, responsible entities, usually the manufacturer, of priority products identified by DTSC must analyze alternatives to eliminate or reduce potential exposure to chemicals of concern in priority products. In the third step, DTSC will respond to the manufacturer's analysis based on criteria set out in the regulations. DTSC's response can include prohibiting the sale and distribution of the product in California. The following is a brief summary of key provisions of the new regulations. The full text of the regulations can be found at www.dtsc.ca.gov/SCPregulations.cfm.

Chemicals of Concern and Priority Products

The regulations define candidate chemicals of concern by reference to lists of potentially hazardous chemicals that have been developed by international, federal, and California agencies. The lists contain approximately 1,200 chemicals. By November 1, DTSC will post on its website a list of the candidate chemicals from these combined lists. Subsequent to this initial posting, DTSC may add or delete listed chemicals using normal rulemaking procedures (including public notice and comment). After the initial candidate chemicals have been listed, DTSC must identify and evaluate products that contain candidate chemicals and determine whether additional evaluation of the products is warranted. In evaluating what product-chemical combinations to propose as priority products, DTSC will consider the potential for exposure to the candidate chemical in the product...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT