EPA's Design for the Environment (DfE) Issues Final Alternatives Assessment Criteria

The USEPA Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics has released its final alternatives assessment criteria for evaluating human and environmental effects in accordance with its Design for the Environment (DfE) program.  DfE helps companies, states and other organizations to "identify safer alternatives to chemicals that may pose a concern to human health and the environment."  More information on the DfE program can be found on EPAs web site.

DfE Alternatives Assessments are "multi-stakeholder partnerships convened to evaluate priority chemicals and functional alternatives."  The goal is to "inform substitution to safer alternatives and reduce the likelihood of unintended consequences that might result if poorly understood alternatives are chosen."  In other words, they don't want to replace one bad chemical with another bad chemical just because they don't know enough about it.  According to DfE, its "expertise and focus is on chemical hazard," and encourages stakeholders to "assist with the selection of the scope of the alternatives assessment, help EPA consider economic realities, and identify likely functional alternatives for evaluation."

So whereas REACH in the EU specifies substances of very high concern and requires authorization for continued use (along with a substitution plan), the DfE program works directly with companies and other stakeholders to fix the problem together.

EPA is currently preparing DfE alternatives assessments for Bisphenol A (BPA), Decabromodiphenyl ether (decaBDE), and Nonylphenol ethoxylate (NPE) surfactants.  The draft reports for public comment are expected to be released by EPA later this year.  In addition, EPA has underway an alternatives assessment for Hexabromocyclodecane (HBCD) in polystyrene insulating foam.  And EPA also plans to conduct an alternatives assessment for phthalates with a kickoff meeting scheduled for August 24, 2011.

Version 2.0 of the Alternatives Assessment Criteria document can be downloaded as a PDF here.

More information and links to the phthalates kickoff meeting signup materials can be found in the right sidebar of the DfE page.

HBCD - A Flame Retardant by Any Other Name

As mentioned previously, EPA has issued three new "action plans" for chemicals that they believe need greater attention.  One of these is Hexabromocyclododecane, or thankfully, simply HBCD.  So what is the big deal with HBCD?  Well, according to EPA, HBCD is "used as a flame retardant in expanded polystyrene foam in the building and construction industry, as well as consumer products."  That means it gets into a lot of houses, or at least into the foam insulation used in a lot of houses and other buildings.

EPA also says that HBCD is "persistent, bioaccumulative and can undergo long-range atmospheric transport." These have become big qualifiers for chemical concern.  If something is persistent it means it can stay in the environment for a very long time.  And if it is bioaccumulative it means all that chemical in the environment could possibly build up in the bodies of plants and/or animals, then the animals that eat those plants or animals, then the animals that eat those animals, etc.  But the "long-range atmospheric transport" is an added concern.  That means that the chemical could persist and bioaccumulate not only near where it is released into the environment, but in remote locations like the Arctic. 

Add in EPA's contention that "studies show HBCD is highly toxic to aquatic organisms" and that "health concerns include potential reproductive, developmental and neurological effects in humans," and you have the reason why they feel they need a plan of action.

But as I've discussed in the past, these actions are planned for the future, or in some cases, just the consideration of taking action is planned for the future.  Given the old adage that a plan is obsolete as soon as it is printed, the actual actions taken by EPA and industry could be much different when they actually take place.  But for now, EPA's plan to deal with HBCD is to:

• Consider initiating TSCA §5(b)(4) Concern List rulemaking on HBCD. Proposed rule in late 2011.
• Initiate TSCA §5(a)(2) Significant New Use Rule to designate HBCD use in consumer textiles as a flame retardant as a significant new use.
• Consider initiating rulemaking under TSCA §6(a) to regulate HBCD.
• Initiate rulemaking to add HBCD to the Toxics Release Inventory. Action expected in late 2011.
• Conduct a Design for the Environment and Green Chemistry alternatives assessment of HBCD.