House Democrats appear likely to step up their oversight of EPA’s implementation of the revised Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) after the agency sidestepped their calls to ban workplace uses of methylene chloride in paint strippers, an action they said would not protect workers.
Facing widespread criticism that its first-time ban on consumer uses of paint strippers containing methylene chloride does not protect workers, the agency's top toxics official is leaving the door open to taking future action to limit workplace risks under the revised toxics law though she stopped short of pledging to ban the chemical's commercial uses that many critics are seeking.
State and local emergency response officials are renewing their call for EPA to promulgate an accident prevention rule to address chemical spills under the Clean Water Act (CWA), criticizing the agency's decision to drop plans for such a rule as a dereliction of duty and arguing recently released EPA data does nothing to support the agency's decision.
Republicans and the chemical industry are rejecting Democrats' calls to require industry to share data with first responders under the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program, a step intended to fill the gap left by EPA's planned rollback of an Obama-era risk management plan (RMP) rule.
Democratic and Republican lawmakers, along with Trump administration officials, agreed during a Feb. 27 hearing on the need for a long-term reauthorization of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) chemical facility safety program but lawmakers appeared divided on whether to provide additional regulatory flexibility to industrial facilities.
Environmentalists are charging that the Trump administration’s process for approving new chemicals under the recently revised toxics law without restrictions fails to adequately address risks to workers, building on long-standing opposition to the new chemicals review process as Acting EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler has pledged revisions.
The Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) and environmental groups are suing to compel the Trump administration to finalize EPA’s Obama-era proposed ban on use of methylene chloride in paint strippers, claiming that the June 2016 revised toxics law requires the agency to protect workers from unreasonable risks.
Exxon Mobil is urging an appellate court to uphold a ruling that barred the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) from enforcing document requests about chemicals that are stored on site but not released as a result of an incident, arguing the Clean Air Act does not provide CSB with power to subpoena for documents related to “potential” releases.
The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) is urging the Trump administration to ensure that EPA’s final rule banning use of methylene chloride in paint strippers protects workers by covering most commercial uses, fearing that the agency is likely to rely on a proposed training program in lieu of a comprehensive ban on the substance’s paint-stripping uses.
The Trump administration has dropped planned rollbacks of Obama-era EPA pesticide rules intended to provide farmworkers with similar protections to workers in industries regulated by OSHA, part of a deal with Democratic senators to win confirmation for the Trump administration’s pick to lead EPA’s toxics office.