All Things Chemical

On June 26, 2024, B&C, along with the Environmental Law Institute and the George Washington University Milken Institute of Public Health, sponsored the all-day virtual conference, TSCA Reform — Eight Years Later. The quality of the discussion, the caliber of the participants, and the timeliness of the content motivated us to repurpose the substantive sessions. B&C and ELI are pleased to co-sponsor this episode of All Things Chemical® to enable our podcast audience to listen to these sessions.

Samantha Liskow, Lead Counsel, Health Program, EDF, moderated Panel 3: New Chemical Review. The panelists included Shari Barash, Director, NCD, OPPT, EPA; Kyla Bennett, Ph.D., Director, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER); Kerry Coy, Product Regulation Specialist, BASF Corporation; Richard E. Engler, Ph.D., Director of Chemistry, B&C; and Daniel Rosenberg, Senior Attorney, Environmental Health, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). The panelists discussed the latest updates to EPA's new chemical review process, whether challenges are being addressed and how, whether review times are being diminished, scientific integrity, and best available science.

ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW.

©2024 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. All Rights Reserved

On June 26, 2024, B&C, along with the Environmental Law Institute and the George Washington University Milken Institute of Public Health, sponsored the all-day virtual conference, TSCA Reform — Eight Years Later. The quality of the discussion, the caliber of the participants, and the timeliness of the content motivated us to repurpose the substantive sessions. B&C and ELI are pleased to co-sponsor this episode of All Things Chemical® to enable our podcast audience to listen to these sessions.

Maria J. Doa, Ph.D., Senior Director, Chemicals Policy, Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), moderated Panel 2: Risk Evaluation and the Supporting Role Sections 4 and 8 Play. The panelists included David B. Fischer, Counsel, Keller and Heckman LLP; Jeffery T. Morris, Ph.D., Director, Existing Chemicals Risk Assessment Division, Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), EPA; Katherine O'Brien, Senior Attorney, Toxic Exposure and Health Program, Earthjustice; Judah Prero, Counsel, Arnold & Porter; and Tracey Woodruff, Ph.D., Professor and Director, University of California, San Francisco, Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment. The panel considered EPA's revised chemical prioritization and risk evaluation processes; the role and extent of peer review; and the utility and timing of Section 4 test rules. More information on EPA's final 2024 rule amending the risk evaluation framework rule is available in our May 14, 2024, memorandum.

ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW.

©2024 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. All Rights Reserved

On June 26, 2024, B&C, along with the Environmental Law Institute and the George Washington University Milken Institute of Public Health, sponsored the all-day virtual conference, TSCA Reform — Eight Years Later. The quality of the discussion, the caliber of the participants, and the timeliness of the content motivated us to repurpose the substantive sessions. B&C and ELI are pleased to co-sponsor this episode of All Things Chemical® to enable our podcast audience to listen to these sessions.

Karyn M. Schmidt, Senior Director, Regulatory & Scientific Affairs, American Chemistry Council, moderated Panel 1: Risk Management. The panelists included MaryAnn Hoff, Global Director Advocacy, EHS & Product Stewardship, PPG; Jonathan Kalmuss-Katz, Supervising Senior Attorney, Earthjustice; Eileen Murphy, Ph.D., Director, Existing Chemicals Risk Management Division, EPA; and Meredith Williams, Director, California Department of Toxic Substances Control. The panel discussed how EPA defines the "extent necessary" to control unreasonable risks and under what circumstances EPA will not seek to ban a chemical use, as well as EPA's final asbestos, methylene chloride, and proposed N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP) risk management rules. More information on the risk management rules is available in our March 28, 2024, memorandum (asbestos), May 17, 2024, memorandum (methylene chloride), and June 21, 2024, memorandum (NMP).

ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW.

©2024 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. All Rights Reserved

This week I had the pleasure of speaking with Michael Connett, Partner with Siri & Glimstad, LLP to discuss his epic litigation representing Food & Water Watch, a non-profit consumer organization that sued EPA over the fluoridation of drinking water. This issue has a long and complicated administrative and litigation history, and Michael and his firm are actively engaged in a groundbreaking federal litigation based on a judicial appeal of a denied Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Section 21 citizen petition. Michael concluded a bench trial earlier this year in federal district court in the Northern District of California. The case is fascinating and much watched. We discuss the case, why TSCA citizen petitions in general are filed, Michael's thoughts on how to prepare petitions to maximize their success (as most are denied), and other means of citizen engagement under TSCA. Resources:

TSCA Section 21 Petition Trends Pre- and Post-Lautenberg

TSCA Reform – Eight Years Later

ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW.

©2024 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. All Rights Reserved

This week I had the pleasure of speaking with W. Scott Thurlow with Thurlow Law & Public Affairs, headquartered Ottawa, Ontario, about Canada's most recent updated draft report on the state of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The updated draft report defines PFAS to exclude fluoropolymers, an issue in which Scott and his firm are deeply engaged. We discuss the draft report, Canada's approach to the regulation of PFAS, and Scott's practice as a Canadian lawyer and public affairs specialist.

ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW.

©2024 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. All Rights Reserved

This week, I welcomed to the studio Lara Hall, Senior Regulatory Scientist/Quality Assurance Specialist at B&C and our consulting affiliate, The Acta Group, to discuss the critical importance of understanding the role of the study sponsor. As our listeners know, chemical data -- testing results, chemical studies, exposure information, environmental fate and monitoring data, to name a few -- are the new currency in the chemical community. These data are incredibly valuable, often proprietary, and increasingly used both to support chemical applications and to rebut allegations of adverse consequences resulting from chemical exposure. How these data are developed, who serves as study sponsor, how the sponsor interacts with the study monitor, laboratory, and others are significant issues and subject to Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) standards. Lara and I discuss GLP and the rights, duties, and obligations of all the actors involved in chemical testing and offer some tips and insights in managing this increasingly complicated space.

ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW.

©2024 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. All Rights Reserved

This week, I welcomed back to the studio Karin F. Baron, Director of Hazard Communication and International Registration Strategy at B&C and our consulting affiliate, The Acta Group. And none too soon. Just when you were giving up hope in tackling the monster final Hazard Communication Standard rule issued on May 20, you realized Karin and I are devoting an entire podcast to the final rule!

As many of you know, Karin is second to none when it comes to hazard communication, GHS, and related domestic and international hazard standards and communicating hazards to global stakeholders. There is no one better suited to discuss the final rule, what in the rule makes us happy, what remains a concern, and how best to read and digest the more than 300 pages of new hazard communication provisions.

ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW.

©2024 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. All Rights Reserved

This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with Elissa Reaves, Ph.D., Director, Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to discuss Dr. Reaves' recent ascent to this position, her approach to office management, her priorities and goals for OPPT, and some interesting comparisons and contrasts with Dr. Reaves' former stomping ground, EPA's Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP).

ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW.

©2024 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. All Rights Reserved

This week I had the pleasure of speaking with Joel A. Tickner, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Public Health, University of Massachusetts Lowell, and Executive Director of Change Chemistry, to discuss green chemistry and Joel's important work at Change Chemistry. We all appreciate that chemicals are essential to society. Green chemistry is all about engineering chemicals to diminish their adverse impacts and ensure chemicals, materials, and products are safe, efficacious, and sustainable. We discuss Joel's pioneering work in this field, his leadership of Change Chemistry, implementation of the Sustainable Chemistry Research and Development (R&D) Act of 2019, and EPA's implementation of amendments to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) addressing new chemical review, and much more.

ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW.

©2024 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. All Rights Reserved

This week I discuss with my colleague, Mark Washko, Senior Government Affairs Advisor for B&C and The Acta Group, our consulting affiliate, the importance of government affairs engagement in the current political environment. Mark recently joined us, having spent 16 years as Head of Federal Government Affairs for BASF Corporation here in Washington, D.C. Mark has significant experience in engaging with Congressional staff and Members to ensure his clients' interests are well served. We discuss a few specific examples of how government affairs engagement has helped, Lautenberg and his work on new chemicals, and how best to prepare for the coming November elections.

ALL MATERIALS IN THIS PODCAST ARE PROVIDED SOLELY FOR INFORMATIONAL AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES. THE MATERIALS ARE NOT INTENDED TO CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR THE PROVISION OF LEGAL SERVICES. ALL LEGAL QUESTIONS SHOULD BE ANSWERED DIRECTLY BY A LICENSED ATTORNEY PRACTICING IN THE APPLICABLE AREA OF LAW.

©2024 Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. All Rights Reserved