Preview Newsletter
PM ACC Clips Report - September 27, 2018
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(ACC Mentioned) First Trade War Casualties In Chemicals And Beyond
Sep 27, 2018 | ICIS
By Will Beacham
With $250bn in US trade tariffs now in place and $110bn from China, we are starting to see some early casualties in this trade war. -
U.S. Union Seeks Raises, Three-Year Contract for Refinery Workers
Sep 26, 2018 | Reuters (In The New York Times)
Union officials representing 30,000 workers at U.S. oil refineries and chemical plants on Wednesday said they will pursue sizable wage increases and a 3-year contract in coming negotiations. -
(ACC Mentioned) Industry Concerned With TSCA Chlorinated Paraffin Snurs
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Kelly Franklin
Business groups throughout the value chain are protesting the US EPA’s plan to impose time-based significant new use rule (Snur) requirements on a set of medium- and long-chain chlorinated paraffins (MCCPs and LCCPs). -
(ACC Mentioned) Academics, NGOs Protest TSCA PBT Risk Review Approach
Sep 27, 2018 | CHemical Watch
By Andrew Turley
The US EPA should not use the approach outlined in its TSCA systematic review document for the five 'PBT' substances that will be subject to expedited risk management action, according to comments from NGOs. -
(ACC Mentioned) US Retail Giant Stops Selling Into California 'Because Of Prop 65'
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Leigh Stringer
US retail giant BJ’s Wholesale Club has, according to a source, stopped online sales to consumers in California because its products may not comply with the state’s recently updated chemical exposure warning law, Proposition 65. -
Vermont to Test More Schools for Chemicals in Water
Sep 27, 2018 | AP (In The New York Times)
State environmental officials plan to test the drinking water at more schools after an initial round of testing found unsafe chemical levels at two schools. -
EU Notifies WTO Of Food Contact Material Regulation Updates
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
The EU has notified the WTO that it intends to authorise three new substances for use in food contact materials: poly((R)-3-hydroxybutyrate-co-(R)-3-hydroxyhexanoate); dimethyl carbonate; and isobutane. -
Major Revamp of REACH Dossier Compliance Processes Announced
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Clelia Oziel
Echa has announced major changes to its REACH dossier evaluation processes in an effort to increase compliance, improve data quality and encourage collaboration between registrants for ongoing dossier obligations. -
EU SDS Enforcement Project Gaining Pace
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
Echa Enforcement Forum’s project to identify and resolve issues with safety data sheet (SDS) quality will take a step forward next week when a working group sits down to identify trends and pinpoint the biggest deficiencies for follow-up action in 2019. -
CIA, Cefic Advise Companies On UK Out-of-REACH Scenario
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Luke Buxton
The UK’s Chemical Industries Association and Cefic have produced a joint briefing note containing advice for companies in the event of Britain leaving EU REACH after Brexit. -
European Environment Agency: Mercury Still A 'Significant Risk'
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
Mercury continues to present a significant risk to the environment and human health, the European Environment Agency said in a report published this month. -
EFSA Working Group Begins Reevaluating BPA
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Dr Emma Davies
A European Food Safety Authority working group has begun to reevaluate the safety of bisphenol A. The working group, which comes under Efsa's panel on food contact materials, enzymes and processing aids (CEP), held its first meeting on 6-7 September. -
ECHA: 'Army' of Inspectors To Probe REACH Registrations
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Clelia Oziel
Companies should prepare for "a whole army of inspectors" descending on them to check compliance with REACH registration obligations and dossier updates in January, an Echa official has warned. -
Cracker Plant Opponents Will Host Forums in Martins Ferry and Moundsville
Sep 27, 2018 | The Wheeling Intelligencer
By Shelley Hanson
A group opposed to possible construction of an ethane cracker plant in Belmont County is scheduled to hold two public meetings in the region. -
As Tariffs On US LNG Take Effect, Warnings Of Long-Term Consequences
Sep 26, 2018 | S&P Global Platts
By Corey Paul
A 10% tariff on US liquefied natural gas is not steep enough to make shipping cargoes to China unprofitable, but it adds an obstacle for the second generation of American terminals, industry observers said. -
The Greenest Places
Sep 27, 2018 | The New York Times
By Michael Kolomatsky
How do you measure energy efficiency? When it comes to individual homes, it’s a good bet that smart buildings equipped with Energy Star-rated appliances will consume less energy. -
DOE Cyber Chief Not ‘Confident’ Utilities Ready For Foreign Cyberattack
Sep 27, 2018 | PoliticoPro - Whiteboard
By Darius Dixon
The head of the Energy Department’s new cybersecurity office told lawmakers this morning she didn’t believe the utility sector was prepared for a sophisticated cyberattack. -
Canada Moves To Improve Oil Train Safety, While U.S. On Slower Track
Sep 27, 2018 | North Jersey Record
By Curtis Tate,
Canada will require outdated tank cars used to transport crude oil by rail to be replaced by November, but U.S. regulators are locked into a schedule that will take until April 2020 to accomplish the same goal. -
Wehrum Outlines Playbook For Obama Rule Rollbacks
Sep 27, 2018 | E&E Greenwire
By Sean Reilly
EPA is poised to move ahead as early as next week with a formal proposal to reconsider its 2012 power plant mercury rule, according to agency air chief Bill Wehrum.
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(ACC Mentioned) First Trade War Casualties In Chemicals And Beyond
Sep 27, 2018 | ICIS
By Will Beacham
With $250bn in US trade tariffs now in place and $110bn from China, we are starting to see some early casualties in this trade war.
Owners of US chemical projects which are export oriented, and were planned with the colossal China market in mind, are now reconsidering these plans. And on 27 September one – Austria’s Lenzing – went public with the news that it has shelved plans for construction of a specialty fibre plant at Alabama, Texas.
The company cited “the rising likelihood of increasing trade tariffs, paired with the potential surge in construction costs due to the buoyant US labour market” for the decision.
The 90,000 tonne/year project, when announced in 2016, had a $293m investment with completion scheduled for the first quarter of 2019.
Lenzing claimed it would have been the largest Tencel lyocell fibre plant in the world.
One wonders if this could be the tip of the iceberg. The American Chemistry Council said earlier in September that a total of 333 US chemical projects worth an accumulative $202.4bn have been announced since 2010.
Of those, 53% are complete or underway, while 41% of projects are still in the planning phase.
These projects rely not only on the availability of cheap and abundant ethane and other natural gas liquid (NGL) feedstocks, but increasingly on export markets.
With China business under threat, and uncertainty around the future of the North Atlantic Free Trade Area (NAFTA), the country’s three largest chemical export markets are in jeopardy – Canada, Mexico and China.
CHINA PVC COLLAPSES
ICIS another early trade war victim this week – China polyvinyl chloride (PVC). The US has imposed tariffs on a range of Chinese finished goods which contain PVC.
The products totalled around $120m in general imports from China to the US last year, according to US International Trade Commission (ITC) data.
This has spooked convertors in China who are now holding back on PVC raw material purchases, reducing demand.
Prices dived by 9% in the space of a week, not helped by an influx of cheap US PVC.
China has not yet imposed a tariff on US PVC. China was the US’s second-largest buyer of export PVC in 2017, .
US FACTORIES AND CONSUMERS HIT
Ford Motor Company CEO, James Hackett, said this week that 25% steel and 10% aluminium tariffs have cost his company $1bn, as domestic prices rose in tandem with higher import prices.
The tariffs will add $400 to the price of a car, according to the American Automotive Policy Council.
If President Trump proceeds with a 25% tax on imported cars and parts, new car prices will rise by $6,000-$7,000 per vehicle, said US Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, who is a Republican.
The earlier January round of US tariffs has already impacted some white or electronics markets.
For example, since then US washing machine price inflation has spiked from below zero (for the last four years) up to 16% in the first half of the year.
And on a smaller scale, the US Palm Beach Post that some waiting times for aluminium hurricane shutters have gone from one up to four months as manufacturers switch to scarcer domestic supplies of the product.
The latest round of tariffs will increase prices for $42bn of US consumer goods, according to some estimates.
This is bound to fuel inflation and this week the US Federal Reserve raised interest rates for the third time this year.
Friedrich Heinemann, head of the ZEW research department Corporate Taxation and Public Finance at the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) in Mannheim, Germany, said: “...the new tariffs imposed on Chinese imports are likely to result in more inflationary pressure. As a consequence, US consumers will be the ones to bear the economic burden of Donald Trump’s punitive tariffs in the form of higher prices for Chinese goods.” ■
https://www.icis.com/resources/news/2018/09/27/10262403/first-trade-war-casualties-in-chemicals-and-beyond/
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U.S. Union Seeks Raises, Three-Year Contract for Refinery Workers
Sep 26, 2018 | Reuters (In The New York Times)
SAN DIEGO — Union officials representing 30,000 workers at U.S. oil refineries and chemical plants on Wednesday said they will pursue sizable wage increases and a 3-year contract in coming negotiations.
Contract talks, which begin in January, come as U.S. refiners are enjoying strong profits, near-full utilization rates and record product exports. In the June quarter, the margin on turning crude to gasoline, diesel and other products was the highest since 2015.
The United Steelworkers union (USW) wants a wage increase comparable to the 6 percent per year increase it originally sought during 2015 talks, Kim Nibarger, chairman of the USW's national oil bargaining program, said in an interview following a three-day union meeting in San Diego.
In 2015, USW members went on a six-week strike at 12 U.S. refineries and three chemical plants. In the end, they accepted a four-year contract that provided members between 2.5 percent to 3.5 percent annual increases each year and changes to working conditions.
Nibarger declined to provide specifics of the proposals that union officials will bring to their members in coming weeks. Local union members will have 45 days to vote on the proposals reached on Wednesday. If 75 percent of locals agree, the wage increase will be presented to companies in January.
"They are in the range of the proposals made in 2015," he said. "I think it is an aggressive proposal, but not unreasonable given the dedication of members to keep their facilities operating at top notch."
Shell Oil Co, the U.S. arm of Royal Dutch Shell Plc was once again named lead negotiator on behalf of companies that own U.S. refineries, including Marathon Petroleum Corp BP Plc, Exxon Mobil Corp, Valero Energy Corp, and smaller refiners such as HollyFrontier Corp and Delek US Holdings Inc.
Shell declined immediate comment on Wednesday.
"Our goal is a mutually beneficial agreement for our members and the companies they work for," said Nibarger.
The USW also wants improvements in a standard meant to reduce fatigue among its workers. It sought a similar change in 2015, he said.EDITORS’ PICKSWorkers Overdose on the Job, and Employers Struggle to RespondSteve Perry Walked Away From Journey. A Promise Finally Ended His Silence.Seeking America’s Quietest Spots: The Quest for Silence in a Loud World
In 2015, the national strike lasted six weeks and some local strikes continued for months with workers at the Marathon Galveston Bay Refinery in Texas not returning to work until July.
The current USW contract runs out on Feb. 1.
https://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2018/09/26/business/26reuters-refineries-labor-contract.html
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(ACC Mentioned) Industry Concerned With TSCA Chlorinated Paraffin Snurs
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Kelly Franklin
Business groups throughout the value chain are protesting the US EPA’s plan to impose time-based significant new use rule (Snur) requirements on a set of medium- and long-chain chlorinated paraffins (MCCPs and LCCPs).
The concern relates to ten Snurs included in a recent batch of 27, issued under TSCA on 17 August. The new rules aim to align requirements imposed on those substances’ original pre-manufacture notice (PMN) submitters to others who may use the chemicals.
But several groups filed adverse comments on the EPA’s plans to define as a ‘significant new use’ the manufacture of each of ten widely used MCCPs and LCCPs for more than five years.
Downstream users, including the Independent Lubricant Manufacturers Association (ILMA) and the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA), said that the substances serve critical roles in applications such as aircraft and jet engine fasteners and in lubricant mixtures, and that the rules would impose uncertainty as to their continued availability.
And the Chemical Users Coalition (CUC) – which represents organisations such as Airbus, Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Intel – added that pausing the use of a substance after five years "is likely to disrupt not only the operations of the manufacturer, but also the operations of downstream processors and users of these substances".
Several industry groups have also questioned whether the agency has the authority to regulate the use of these existing substances under section 5 of TSCA: the new chemicals programme.Background to chlorinated paraffin issue
Unlike typical PMNs, which correspond to substances entering the US market for the first time, the notices to which these ten Snurs relate are for substances that have already been in commerce for decades.
The substances had been brought to market under two ‘categorical’ entries for chlorinated paraffins, which were included on the original 1979 TSCA inventory. But in 2009, the EPA brought enforcement action against a chlorinated paraffin manufacturer and an importer, objecting that their substances were not captured in these non-specific listings, and therefore not included on the inventory.
A 2012 consent decree entered in a federal district court resolved this issue. It allowed the companies to continue to produce the chemicals, provided they submit PMNs for them, which they did that same year.
Some five years later, the EPA approved the PMNs and imposed a consent order on each. Among their requirements were that the PMN submitter must discontinue the substances’ manufacture after five years, unless they have submitted new environmental test data.
The recent Snurs apparently represent the EPA’s effort to extend this consent order requirement to the rest of the marketplace. If adopted, it would require the submission of a significant new use notice (Snun) for use of the substance beyond that five-year period.
The EPA could, presumably, then use the test data it will have received by then to determine if those uses pose an unreasonable risk.Industry concerns
The Chlorinated Paraffins Industry Association (CPIA) was among groups who requested that the agency amend the Snurs in order for them to be "clear and effective".
The CUC said, for example, that it was not clear when the five-year period begins: if it is from the date of the Snur becoming effective, or from when an individual entity begins manufacturing.
It also sought further information on what obligations would be applicable to processors.
The American Chemistry Council (ACC), meanwhile, argued that the EPA may not treat these substances as typical PMN chemicals, and that it cannot assert that uses which have been ongoing for considerably more than five years can be counted as "new".
But it noted that the EPA may use section 6 – which covers existing chemicals – to conduct a risk evaluations on them. MCCPs and LCCPs are both included on the 2014 update to the TSCA work plan, a group of substances which the agency is directed to "give preference to" when selecting high priority substances, the ACC added.
The ILMA and AIA also recommended that the EPA address the substances through section 6 of TSCA.Rulemaking process
The EPA issued the Snurs as both a direct final rule and a proposed rule. If adverse comments are received with respect to the former, the EPA must withdraw those portions of the rule and address them through the more formal proposed rulemaking process.
Beyond the concerns raised on these chlorinated paraffins, the EPA also received feedback from the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) raising issue with the full set of 27 substances, in line with its commentson 145 other Snurs.
The agency is therefore likely to withdraw the entire direct final rule, as it has done with the first set of rules issued in August.Chlorinated paraffins subject to proposed Snursalkanes, C20-28, chloro;slack waxes (petroleum), chloro;hexacosane, chloro derivs. and octacosane, chloro derivs.;alkanes, C20-24, chloro;alkanes C14-16, chloro;tetradecane, choro derivs.;octadecane, choro derivs.;alkanes, C18-20, chloro;alkanes, C14-17, chloro; andalkanes, C22–30, chloro.
https://chemicalwatch.com/70585/industry-concerned-with-tsca-chlorinated-paraffin-snurs
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(ACC Mentioned) Academics, NGOs Protest TSCA PBT Risk Review Approach
Sep 27, 2018 | CHemical Watch
By Andrew Turley
The US EPA should not use the approach outlined in its TSCA systematic review document for the five 'PBT' substances that will be subject to expedited risk management action, according to comments from NGOs.
The Lautenberg Act, which amended TSCA in 2016, requires the EPA to take quick or "expedited" action on certain substances that are persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT). The law directs the EPA to skip risk evaluation of these substances and proceed directly to imposing rules to reduce their exposure "to the extent practicable".
The five substances are:decaBDE;hexachlorobutadiene (HCBD);pentachlorothiophenol (PCTP);tris(4-isopropylphenyl) phosphate (IPTPP); and2,4,6-tris(tert-butyl) phenol (2,4,6-TTBP).
In comments submitted in response to two EPA documents that analyse their uses, exposure routes and hazards, NGOs and academics have remained strongly critical of the EPA's systematic review document. This recently released guidance outlines the approach the EPA will take to integrating data from multiple sources, a key step in risk assessment of data-rich substances.
"The document is incomplete, inconsistent with the state of the science, and too flawed to be used," said the Natural Resources Defense Council in its comments. "Accordingly, use of the document violates TSCA and is otherwise arbitrary and capricious."
The NRDC said that it was "particularly concerned" about the use of the document for assessment of the five PBT substances. Its comments – dated 16 August but posted to the public docket this month – were supported by 19 other organisations.
The concern about use of the systematic review document for assessment of the five PBT substances was echoed in comments from Safer Chemicals Healthy Families (SCHF) and a group of 33 scientists, including ten from the University of California.Other issues
The NGOs also criticised the EPA for failing to account for many routes of exposure and for dismissing a large volume of exposure data.
The "principle concern" of the SCHF, however, was was that the EPA had not clearly explained how the two documents on the five PBT substances will influence restriction of the substances under TSCA section 6(h)
"It’s critical that the agency has a clear understanding of the goals and requirements of section 6(h) and how the two documents will contribute to meeting them," it said.
The American Chemistry Council, meanwhile, described as "problematic" the proposed use of read-across for exposure assessment of the antioxidant 2,4,6-TTBP.
"We commend the extension of this principle [of read-across] to the area of exposure characterisation," the trade association said. "However, EPA has not identified those characteristics that would make a surrogate chemical suitable for read-across for exposure."
It also recommended against the proposed use of exposure data from outside the US and from studies that have not been put in their "temporal context" with respect to substance use trends.
Proposed risk management rules for all five substances are due by 22 June 2019. Final rules are set to follow within 18 months.
https://chemicalwatch.com/70613/academics-ngos-protest-tsca-pbt-risk-review-approach
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(ACC Mentioned) US Retail Giant Stops Selling Into California 'Because Of Prop 65'
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Leigh Stringer
Products may not meet labelling requirements, says BJ’s Wholesale Club
US retail giant BJ’s Wholesale Club has, according to a source, stopped online sales to consumers in California because its products may not comply with the state’s recently updated chemical exposure warning law, Proposition 65.
The law requires businesses to provide warnings, typically in the form of labels or signs, for exposures to chemicals that cause cancer or reproductive harm. California maintains a list of chemicals it has determined present these effects, which currently holds around 900 substances.
The company, which has stores predominantly on the US east coast, but does not have any sites in California, confirmed that it has "opted to temporarily stop selling merchandise to consumers in California" but it did not officially confirm why.
However, on the company's chat portal, a customer services representative told Chemical Watch that BJ's no longer ships to California "due to a legal regulation called Proposition 65".
"The state of California requires a health warning label on products containing any of [more than 900] chemicals if those chemicals are present in a product in excess of allowable limits," the customer services representative added.
"At this time, our products are not labelled to meet these requirements. So (at least for now) we will no longer sell products in California."BJ's appears to have taken action following significant amendments to the law, which took effect on 30 August, on how ‘clear and reasonable warning’ must be provided. The changes also brought new warning obligations for online retailers, which now must disclose to consumers that a product may expose them to a Prop 65-listed substance before they have purchased it.
BJ’s decision is of interest because US government data has shown that California’s economy is the fifth largest in the world, exceeding the UK’s. It is therefore a ripe market for US businesses. The company declined to answer Chemical Watch’s questions on why it decided to stop online sales rather than complying with the law, how this will, if at all, impact the company’s revenue and when it would resume selling into California.
Sam Delson, deputy director for external and legislative affairs at Oehha, the California agency which oversees the law, told Chemical Watch that the 30 August amendments have not changed the criteria for whether or not a warning is needed.
Other than for newly listed chemicals, the warnings required today have been required since the law's adoption in 1986, he said. The amendments only change the way clear warning must be provided.
Mr Delson said that occasionally consumers inform the agency that a company no longer ships a particular product to California because of Prop 65.
"In most cases, the products are health or nutritional supplements," he said.
But he clarified that Prop 65 does not ban or restrict any products: "If a company chooses not to ship into California because they don’t want to provide a required health warning, that is their choice, not a Prop 65 ban."
A debate over the efficacy of the law has been ongoing. Last week at Chemical Watch’s Safer Chemicals in Products conference in Boston, the American Chemistry Council (ACC) labelled Prop 65 an "unmitigated disaster".
Oehha and supporters of the law, however, say that it has led to significant reformulations and a reduction in exposure to hazardous chemicals across many products.
https://chemicalwatch.com/70559/major-us-retailer-stops-selling-into-california-because-of-prop-65
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Vermont to Test More Schools for Chemicals in Water
Sep 27, 2018 | AP (In The New York Times)
MONTPELIER, Vt. — State environmental officials plan to test the drinking water at more schools after an initial round of testing found unsafe chemical levels at two schools.
Last week, the state health department recommended that all schools test their water for lead. Now, the Department of Environmental Conservation said it is looking at a list of about 25 schools to figure out which should be in line for testing for chemicals known by the acronym PFAS. The state recently tested 10 schools for the chemicals and found that both Grafton Elementary School and Warren Elementary School had levels above the state's safe drinking standard.
Chuck Schwer, waste management director at the conservation department, told Vermont Public Radio that he hopes the next round of testing will happen by January.
https://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2018/09/27/us/ap-vt-water-testing-schools.html
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EU Notifies WTO Of Food Contact Material Regulation Updates
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
The EU has notified the WTO that it intends to authorise three new substances for use in food contact materials: poly((R)-3-hydroxybutyrate-co-(R)-3-hydroxyhexanoate); dimethyl carbonate; and isobutane.
The EU said it also plans to modify the conditions of use of one substance, introduce a group migration limit for one substance and clarify the types of migrants that are to be used in foods with a certain pH.
It will also introduce requirements for the migration testing for the migrating oligomers for one of the newly authorised substance when it is used for the production or polycarbonates other than the ones covered by the specific authorisation, and the EU plans to correct typographical errors in its Regulation.
The EU’s Directorate General for Health and Food Safety will accept comments on the proposals until 24 November.
https://chemicalwatch.com/70597/eu-notifies-wto-of-food-contact-material-regulation-updates
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Major Revamp of REACH Dossier Compliance Processes Announced
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Clelia Oziel
Echa has announced major changes to its REACH dossier evaluation processes in an effort to increase compliance, improve data quality and encourage collaboration between registrants for ongoing dossier obligations.
From January, the agency says, it will send draft evaluation decisions to all the registrants of a non-compliant dossier, not just the lead registrants.
And, it adds, once a draft decision has been issued it will no longer consider routine dossier updates such as changes to tonnage band, uses or the intermediate status of a registration.
The changes were announced in an Echa webinar and public statement, and come amid growing pressure from regulators and NGOs for better dossier compliance. The agency revealed in March that over the past decade nearly seven in ten registration dossiers have failed to pass muster.
The European Commission also highlighted the problem in its second REACH Review, in which improvements to dossier updates and evaluation procedures were listed among its proposed actions.
And the issue raised its head at this week’s Chemical Watch Enforcement Forum in Brussels, following a presentation on by Jean-Philippe Montfort of law firm Mayer Brown on the recent European Court ruling on the agency’s use of statements of non compliance (Soncs).Current practice
Echa currently addresses draft evaluation decisions mainly to lead registrants. Individual registrants only receive this information in 'op-outs' – when they submit separate data for a particular use – or if they have high tonnage dossiers.
Up until the last registration deadline, lead registrants were tasked with informing other consortium members in substance information exchange fora (Sief). Information exchange among the co-registrants has been less than ideal, however, leading to gaps in data disclosed in dossiers, according to many observers.
Echa says the change is "timely" as Siefs ceased to exist in a legal context as of 1 June following the last REACH registration deadline. However, registrants are still bound by post-deadline obligations such as dossier updates, joint submissions, new information requests, and cost sharing.
From 1 January, the agency will start checking the compliance of all relevant dossiers for a given substance, and send decisions on testing proposals "to all those registrants intending to rely on the proposed tests to fulfil their information requirement".
It hopes the revision will bring whole joint submissions into compliance, and improve data quality. And, the agency said, it will ensure a level playing field for registrants through "greater certainty and clarity" on obligations, and by addressing opt-outs more systematically.
The changes will also help reduce the number of unnecessary animal testing by making test requests across whole joint submissions, Echa added.Efficiency changes
As part of the initiative, Echa announced an array of other changes to its dossier evaluation processes. These include:streamlining the content of decisions, clear information to registrants about their legal obligations;dossier updates must take place before draft decision is issued;new online dossier evaluation progress tracker;no informal interaction with Echa after the draft decision; andregistrants asked to speak "with one voice".
Regarding the content of non-compliance Decisions, Echa said it will provide "more focused justifications" for information requests during the evaluation process.
The agency has faced criticism from industry about the difficulty of predicting the compliance standards it applies when evaluating dossiers. The process can take several years before a final decision is issued and registrants are required to submit new data.
In a further step, Echa urged companies to "take a proactive role" and update dossiers before the revised evaluation process is kicked off in 2019.
Justifications for waivers from information requests from Echa, or on adaptations such as category or read-across approaches will also not be considered after a draft decision is made, it said. From that point, an update will be taken into account only if:it brings the dossier into compliance; orto avoid unnecessary animal testing.
Among other changes, the agency will no longer offer informal interaction with registrants after a draft decision is sent, as it says "many already know the process". This may be replaced by earlier interaction before the start of evaluation when addressing categories or groups of substances.
The new evaluation regime also calls for registrants to coordinate their responses to Echa, and "speak with one voice" during the entire process.'Crystal clear' decisions
The European Chemical Industry Council said the initiative was "helpful" for registrants and reflected the reality of the post-2018 REACH era without Siefs as legal entities.
"It will be crystal clear who will have to contribute to what study, which will reduce the number of discussions on cost-sharing," Cefic said.
However, some of its members are concerned that Echa may no longer consider changes related to the tonnage band after a draft decision has been notified, it said, and it is checking "whether this does not contradict current legislation".
https://chemicalwatch.com/70607/major-revamp-of-reach-dossier-compliance-processes-announced
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EU SDS Enforcement Project Gaining Pace
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
Echa Enforcement Forum’s project to identify and resolve issues with safety data sheet (SDS) quality will take a step forward next week when a working group sits down to identify trends and pinpoint the biggest deficiencies for follow-up action in 2019.
The meeting is part of the REACH-En-Force (Ref-5) initiative involving national enforcement authorities and industry representatives who have compiled a large database about the quality of SDS information, Sinead McMickan, Echa's enforcement forum vice chair, told the Chemical Watch Enforcement Summit Europe 2018 this week.
"We are aware there are many problems with poor quality safety data sheets in the chain, despite their age – they’re nearly 30 years old now – and yet, the information that is coming out of them is quite poor. And it is worrying," Ms McMickan told delegates at the Brussels' conference.
Once the trends and biggest deficiencies are identified, the group will propose solutions which will be implemented and monitored.
"We are gathering data, and it will be next year until we really see some action coming out of this," Ms McMickan added.
She also outlined several of Echa's REACH enforcement projects and priorities for the future which include:the REF-8 project focusing on internet sales and restrictions, with a working group to start in early 2019 and be operational in 2020;drafting of the final report for the prior informed consent (Pic) Regulation project looking at export notification requirements;a pilot project focused on cooperation with customs authorities; anda survey to determine practices and interaction between REACH and occupational safety and health (OSH) inspectors to remove overlaps and improve coordination of national enforcement authorities.
https://chemicalwatch.com/70596/eu-sds-enforcement-project-gaining-pace
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CIA, Cefic Advise Companies On UK Out-of-REACH Scenario
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Luke Buxton
The UK’s Chemical Industries Association and Cefic have produced a joint briefing note containing advice for companies in the event of Britain leaving EU REACH after Brexit.
In a "worst-case scenario" – where a trade deal is not agreed between the UK and the EU – REACH could stop applying to Britain from 30 March 2019; or from 1 January 2021 if a transition period is negotiated.
The note comes a few days after the UK government published its no-deal Brexit technical notice for the chemicals industry.
The CIA and Cefic provide guidance on three areas:considerations for UK-based businesses for maintaining access to the single market;considerations for EU-based companies with UK supply and trade relationships; andimplications of a future UK REACH for UK and EU27/EEA companies.
To ensure continued validity of existing REACH registrations in the EU, they say, it is important that companies identify substances/mixtures impacted by Brexit and their role in the supply chain.
If a substance is manufactured by UK and EU legal entities from the same company and both hold valid registrations, the EU entity could act as importer of the UK product.
In this case, the EU legal entity’s existing registration would need to be updated to reflect any additional volume in the dossier, the note adds.
"Please be mindful that higher tonnage bands may be reached and further testing required as a consequence. An only representative (OR) would not need to be appointed in this case and transfer of registrations would not be required. Such a scenario however would not be available to companies which only have sites in the UK."
In the case of mixtures, UK formulators may need to track raw materials imported from the EU to confirm future "re-import" to EU status.Registration transfers
In an out-of-REACH scenario, UK registered companies wishing to continue selling their chemicals in the EU would need to transfer their registration to an only representative based in the trade bloc.
However, UK manufacturers and importers will need to maintain their registrations in the UK to be able to continue to manufacture/import in the country until REACH no longer applies.
The Echa website says that the possibility of transferring existing registrations "immediately" before the withdrawal date will be put in place for registrations held by UK manufacturers and practical steps will be clarified in due course.
The CIA and Cefic say UK companies "should assume" that in a worst-case scenario their accounts in Echa's REACH-IT system may have to be deactivated from the date REACH stops applying in Britain, "so transfer of registrations should be completed before the UK leaves the regime".
According to the note, Echa is setting up a contractual agreement to appoint an OR, which contains a "suspensive conditional clause" stipulating that the appointment takes effect on the date EU withdrawal is executed.
In the case of UK importer registrations – Echa says it is not possible to transfer a registration of a British importer to a newly appointed OR. In this case, non-EU manufacturers may appoint an EU-based OR. However, the latter would then need to submit a new registration for the substance.
Additionally, the CIA and Cefic say they expect companies based outside the UK (including EU businesses) will be able to appoint UK-based representatives if they wish to relieve British customers from registration obligations under a UK REACH – although this has not yet been officially confirmed.
They urge companies to review consortia agreements to prepare for the potential future transfer of dossier rights to an EU subsidiary or representative.
Should a no-deal scenario transpire, the associations say they will continue to engage with authorities on both sides to ensure REACH compliance challenges faced by UK and EU business are minimised.
https://chemicalwatch.com/70610/cia-cefic-advise-companies-on-uk-out-of-reach-scenario
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European Environment Agency: Mercury Still A 'Significant Risk'
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
Mercury continues to present a significant risk to the environment and human health, the European Environment Agency said in a report published this month.
While the main source of new emissions is coal burning, about half of the mercury deposited in the environment comes from outside Europe.
The substance, the report says, poses the biggest risk in rivers, lakes and oceans where it takes a highly toxic form that is absorbed by animals, including fish.
Entitled Mercury in Europe’s environment – A priority for European and global action, the report is available for free via the EEA’s website.
The EEA is an agency of the European Union that gives "independent information on the environment for those involved in developing, adopting, implementing and evaluating environmental policy, and also the general public".
A new EU mercury Regulation came into force in July.
https://chemicalwatch.com/70609/european-environment-agency-mercury-still-a-significant-risk
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EFSA Working Group Begins Reevaluating BPA
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Dr Emma Davies
A European Food Safety Authority working group has begun to reevaluate the safety of bisphenol A. The working group, which comes under Efsa's panel on food contact materials, enzymes and processing aids (CEP), held its first meeting on 6-7 September.
The reevaluation will focus on scientific literature published since 2012 right up until mid-October of this year. It will select studies using Efsa's updated protocol for BPA's hazard assessment. This was published in 2017, following a public consultation.
In January 2015, Efsa published a scientific opinion suggesting that the substance poses "no health concern for any age group from dietary exposure and low health concern from aggregated exposure". It set a temporary tolerable daily intake (TDI) for BPA of 4µg/kg of body weight/day, but found that highest exposure estimates were three to five times lower than this level.
The working group's ultimate aim is to decide whether scientific evidence still backs the temporary TDI. Approaches
The updated protocol combines systematic and narrative approaches for assessing papers. It will include information from the US CLARITY-BPA project, developed by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the Food and Drug Administration.
The working group will start by testing the hazard protocol using a set of already-evaluated studies. After this pilot phase, it will begin the task of reevaluating the substance's safety.
When Efsa published its 2015 scientific opinion, some NGOs found fault with the way it had selected studies.
Meanwhile, the National Food Institute of the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) suggested that the temporary TDI "does not adequately protect" against BPA's endocrine-disrupting effects.
https://chemicalwatch.com/70602/efsa-working-group-begins-reevaluating-bpa
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ECHA: 'Army' of Inspectors To Probe REACH Registrations
Sep 27, 2018 | Chemical Watch
By Clelia Oziel
Companies should prepare for "a whole army of inspectors" descending on them to check compliance with REACH registration obligations and dossier updates in January, an Echa official has warned.
The investigations fall under the seventh REACH enforcement project (Ref-7).
Initially the focus was on full REACH registration checks, including whether substances registered as intermediates fulfil the necessary requirements – that a substance is only manufactured and used under strictly controlled conditions (under REACH Articles 17 and 18).
However Johan Nouwen, head of Echa's Support, Forum and HelpNet Secretariat, told delegates at the Chemical Watch Enforcement Summit in Brussels this week that dossier update checks were later added to the scope.
Echa’s Enforcement Forum decided to follow up on the top proposed action to emerge from the European Commission's second REACH Review – that of encouraging dossier updates, he said.
Checks will include imported chemicals, in cooperation with customs authorities in the 31 member states of the European Economic Area, all of which are expected to participate in the project.Training
Around 270 people from national enforcement authorities (NEA) will attend Echa's annual training event on 3-4 October, which will centre around Ref-7 inspections, Echa subsequently told Chemical Watch. Around 200 of those will be "remote" participants.
Those inspectors trained first will have the responsibility of training others at national level, and "multiply" the impact on the training.
The total number of inspectors to be employed under Ref-7 is not yet known, but Echa said data collected at the end of 2017 showed there were close to 1,000 trained as a result of its annual training for trainers.
Ref-7 will run for one year and will be followed by a report at the end of 2020.Enforcement priorities
In his address, Dr Nouwen also outlined the enforcement Forum's upcoming five-year work programme, which he said was "nearly ready."
Key areas of focus during the period between 2019-2023 will include:control of imports through close cooperation with customs authorities;internet sales of chemicals; andimproved cooperation between NEAs in cross-border cases, which, Dr Nouwen said, is "critical in enforcement along the supply chain".
Regarding REACH registration obligations, "the duty will never be over and will now become routine part of all checks", Dr Nouwen said, adding risk management measures will "now form the focus" of REACH enforcement.
The Forum is also working on the REACH Review actions. These include a recommendation to enhance enforcement (Action 13) and removal of overlaps in REACH and the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) legislation interface (Action 12).
As part of Action 13, Echa's Forum and member states are requested to establish comparable parameters on enforcement and report activities annually to Echa.
Dr Nouwen said the Forum is still discussing how to address this, but an active proposal will explore what information would be useful for the Forum and NEAs and will test-run an annual report.
Improved cooperation between REACH and OSH is one of the Forum's priorities, Dr Nouwen said. It will conduct a survey within member states to find out inspectors' existing divisions of roles, cooperation practices and training needs.
On CLP, the Forum will explore the enforcement of new requirements on the notification of data on hazardous mixtures to national appointed poison centres, Dr Nouwen said.
https://chemicalwatch.com/70619/echa-army-of-inspectors-to-probe-reach-registrations
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Cracker Plant Opponents Will Host Forums in Martins Ferry and Moundsville
Sep 27, 2018 | The Wheeling Intelligencer
By Shelley Hanson
A group opposed to possible construction of an ethane cracker plant in Belmont County is scheduled to hold two public meetings in the region.
The FreshWater Accountability Project is slated to hold a meeting from 1-4 p.m. Saturday at the Martins Ferry Public Library, 20 S. Fifth St., and another from 6-7:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Moundsville Public Library, 700 Fifth St., Moundsville.
Lea Harper, managing director of the FreshWater Accountability Project, said she began the group in 2010 after having negative experiences with the natural gas industry near her former hometown of Senecaville, Ohio.
She believes people are being shortchanged, forced into supporting an industry that can create unhealthy air and water because of the need for jobs. However, the promise of a high number of jobs coming to the area because of the plant, she believes, also is not true.
“We need to demand lives for ourselves and our communities,” she said. “Short-term jobs are never worth long-term pollution.”
During the meeting, a presentation will be made and people can then ask questions. However, Harper said she will not tolerate people from the industry intentionally disrupting the meetings. If they attempt to do so, they will be asked to leave.
“We can’t buy the false narrative anymore,” she said.
It has been reported previously that air quality permits show that a ethane cracker plant being constructed in Monaca, Pennsylvania, could emit carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, ammonia, xylene and benzene and other pollutants.
According to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, the Monaca cracker has the potential to emit the following air pollutants annually: 348 tons of nitrogen oxides; 1,012 tons of carbon monoxide; 21 tons of sulfur oxides; 522 tons of volatile organic compounds; 152 tons of ammonia; and 2.24 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalents.
The proposed Belmont County plant by PTTGC America LLC would be south of Shadyside at Old Ohio 7 and Ferry Landing Road, according to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
The Ohio EPA in January 2017 approved wastewater discharge permits into the Ohio River and stormwater into Lockwood Run and the river for the proposed plant. It also approved a 401 Water Quality Certification, which allows for the discharge of dredged or fill material into the streams and wetlands during construction.
According to Ohio EPA, a public hearing on the plant and its potential discharges into streams was held in 2016 in Shadyside. People spoke in favor of the plant coming, while others expressed concern about pollution. In one reply, the EPA noted water sampling for pollution monitoring would be conducted by cracker plant officials, with periodic and annual checks by federal authorities. It was noted the EPA cannot require the company to use a third party to take the samples.
http://www.theintelligencer.net/news/community/2018/09/cracker-plant-opponents-will-host-forums-in-martins-ferry-and-moundsville/
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As Tariffs On US LNG Take Effect, Warnings Of Long-Term Consequences
Sep 26, 2018 | S&P Global Platts
By Corey Paul
Cargoes to China could still be profitable
China expected to be largest incremental LNG buyer
Arlington, Virginia — A 10% tariff on US liquefied natural gas is not steep enough to make shipping cargoes to China unprofitable, but it adds an obstacle for the second generation of American terminals, industry observers said.
"With the 10% tariff implementation, we are probably not going to see a cessation of US LNG exports to China," said Madeline Jowdy, senior director of global gas and LNG analytics at S&P Global Platts, at an energy industry conference. "But there will be a price to be paid."
Jowdy and other observers at the United States Association for Energy Economics conference this week in Arlington, Virginia, described the ongoing trade war between the US and China as a headwind for the emerging American LNG industry, which some experts say is a key defense against a global supply shortfall that could appear in the mid-2020s. The biggest effect could be greater difficulty for US developers already struggling to find long-term buyers for their multibillion-dollar LNG export projects.
The tariff took effect Monday. It was lower than the 25% tariff China had initially threatened to apply to US LNG, among other products, to counter the Trump administration's proposed tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese imports.
Sending US cargoes to China could still be profitable, said Ronald Ripple, a professor of energy business and finance at The University of Tulsa. "Even with a 10% reduction off of the market price in Asia, they get a greater netback for that than if they ... went to Europe," Ripple said in an interview at the conference. "They'll still take it to Asia. They'll still take it to China."
Some buyers and sellers may try to divert cargoes of US LNG to China in anticipation of developments in the trade war, Jowdy said. "We've definitely heard that basically anybody who was planning on cargoes to China this winter, they are definitely trying to swap them out to the extent that they can," Jowdy said.
US LNG exports are an outlet for surging gas production in the country. Gas is able to fetch multiples of its US price in Asia, Dean Foreman, chief economist at the American Petroleum Institute, said during a panel held Wednesday at the conference.
"Security of supply is one of the important ingredients," Foreman said, especially for LNG buyers in Asia. "Who do you trust to sign a long-term procurement agreement for LNG? And if you are having a trade spat with that partner, it's really hard to get them to come to the table and sign a trustful long-term agreement."
China is expected to be the largest incremental buyer of LNG. But right now US LNG is a small portion of China's total LNG imports, even though China is a significant destination for US LNG exports. From Cheniere Energy's first export of LNG from the Lower 48 in February 2016 through July 2018, China has received the third-greatest volume of US LNG of any country.
An appointee in the Trump administration, the Interior Department's Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management Joseph Balash, described the tariffs as a temporary negotiation tactic. He expected gas production on the public lands under his purview would still make its way to the global export market.
"There are some headwinds -- there are some issues associated with trade right now that we view as a negotiation," Balash said during the Wednesday panel. "Our expectation is that we will overcome these current additional costs in the marketplace because of the tariff fight that's going on between our nation and China in particular. We view that as temporary."
US LNG exports could grow by 2024 to supply around 20% of the global LNG market, up from roughly 5% now, Jowdy said. She said the most significant effect that US gas would have on global markets would result from the commodity being priced against the Henry Hub benchmark, meaning it could be sold on a liquid basis that can be hedged.
"It's important to remember that the US is really only just starting its process in terms of liquefaction additions," Jowdy said. "And when people say, 'Well, where is the oversupply? Where is the liquid gas market? Where is the Henry Hub indexation in Asia?' -- all I can say to you is 'hang on a second. It's coming.'" -
https://www.spglobal.com/platts/en/market-insights/latest-news/natural-gas/092618-as-tariffs-on-us-lng-take-effect-warnings-of-long-term-consequences
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Sep 27, 2018 | The New York Times
By Michael Kolomatsky
How do you measure energy efficiency? When it comes to individual homes, it’s a good bet that smart buildings equipped with Energy Star-rated appliances will consume less energy. But figuring out the energy efficiency of an entire city is more complicated, and requires factoring in things like local law and public policy.
The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy tackles that onerous task every two years, ranking major American cities based on actions they are taking to conserve energy in five categories: transportation policies; energy and water utilities; buildings policies; local government operations; and communitywide initiatives.
The most recent City Energy Efficiency Scorecard, issued in 2017 — a hefty report of more than 200 pages — ranked Boston at the top, thanks in part to its very high score in the energy and water utilities category: The city’s utilities offer customers a number of programs to help reduce energy consumption and increase efficiency.
New York came in second, with a high score for local government operations — including policies that encourage improvements in new buildings and retrofits to old ones, and an upgraded fleet of energy-efficient municipal vehicles.
Here are the scorecard’s top 15 cities, and how they made the grade.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/27/realestate/the-greenest-places.html
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DOE Cyber Chief Not ‘Confident’ Utilities Ready For Foreign Cyberattack
Sep 27, 2018 | PoliticoPro - Whiteboard
By Darius Dixon
The head of the Energy Department’s new cybersecurity office told lawmakers this morning she didn’t believe the utility sector was prepared for a sophisticated cyberattack.
“Do you feel confident that our utilities are adequately prepared and protected from Russian and North Korean cyberattacks to prevent massive blackouts or credible enough threats of massive blackouts to make our nation vulnerable to cyber blackmail?” Rep. Jerry McNerney (D-Calif.) asked Karen Evans, DOE’s assistant secretary for cybersecurity, energy security, and emergency response.
“Since you asked me, ‘Do I feel confident?’ the answer would be no,” Evans told the House Energy And Commerce Committee's energy panel. Her office was established earlier this year and Evans was confirmed to the post last month.
McNerney ran out of time to continue questioning Evans, so he was unable to follow up on her response
https://subscriber.politicopro.com/energy/whiteboard
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Canada Moves To Improve Oil Train Safety, While U.S. On Slower Track
Sep 27, 2018 | North Jersey Record
By Curtis Tate,
Canada will require outdated tank cars used to transport crude oil by rail to be replaced by November, but U.S. regulators are locked into a schedule that will take until April 2020 to accomplish the same goal.
This month, Transport Canada adopted a Nov. 1 deadline for phasing out the CPC-1232 tank car for crude oil service. The cars must be replaced with DOT-117 tank cars, which have thicker shells, fire-protection materials and shields to prevent punctures, or they can be retrofitted with those features.
"Phasing out these least crash-resistant tank cars as soon as possible is another concrete step our government is taking to enhance the safety of communities along our railway lines," Canadian Transport Minister Marc Garneau said in a statement.
The U.S. Department of Transportation, however, is stuck with the April 1, 2020 deadline Congress required in the 2015 Fixing America's Surface Transportation, or FAST Act.
The National Transportation Safety Board, citing several oil train derailments it investigated, called the federal government's schedule "unacceptable."
Millions of gallons of crude oil and ethanol travel by rail through New Jersey's most densely populated areas every week on their way to refineries in the region. A series of fiery derailments over the past decade have raised safety and environmental concerns.
The NTSB called attention to four derailments in early 2015 as examples of what made the CPC-1232 unsuitable for crude oil transportation.
In February 2015, the derailment of a CSX oil train in Mount Carbon, West Virginia, resulted in a succession of large explosions and a fire that burned for days, and the release of 378,000 gallons of oil from North Dakota's Bakken shale region.
The 27 cars that derailed met the CPC-1232 standard, but lacked fire protection.
BE PREPARED: Are NJ communities prepared for the worst when a train derails?
TICKING UP: Oil trains on the rebound to Northeast refineries, federal data show
REVOLVING DOOR: CSX official who urged Christie oil train veto to lead oil train regulator
HIDDEN RISK: Ethanol has replaced oil trains as hidden safety risk in N.J.
So did the 21 tank cars that derailed on a BNSF train carrying Bakken oil in Galena, Illinois, in March 2015. That derailment spilled 110,000 gallons of oil and ignited a fire that local emergency response personnel had difficulty bringing under control.
Two more derailments of Canadian National trains in Gogama, Ontario, in February and March 2015, demonstrated not only the vulnerability of the CPC-1232 design, but also the fire threat posed by thicker oil from western Canada, sometimes called tar sands, when diluted for rail transportation.
The NTSB noted that tank cars equipped with thermal protection could provide an 18 percent reduction in product loss in a derailment, as well as ten-fold improvement in the ability to withstand prolonged exposure to fire.
"Research studying accidents involving tank cars has shown that use of tank cars with thermal protection and a jacket will significantly reduce the amount of product released in accidents," the NTSB wrote the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration in April 2015.
A month later, USDOT announced its new tank car standards, with the April 2020 deadline for removing the CPC-1232 from crude oil trains, a July 2023 deadline for removing them from ethanol trains and a May 2025 deadline for prohibiting them from transporting other flammable liquids.
The NTSB called the 10-year schedule "excessively long."
"The NTSB is concerned that such a timeline for action would present increasing risk of severe injury to persons, property and environmental damage for many years to come," the board wrote in April 2015.
Since the replacement schedule was codified in late 2015, crude oil shipments by rail have declined overall. Still, two more derailments have shown the vulnerability of cars that meet the new standards.
In June 2016, a Union Pacific train carrying Bakken oil derailed in Mosier, Oregon, along the Columbia River. Sixteen tank cars derailed and three caught fire, and about 30,000 gallons of oil was released. The cars were CPC-1232 compliant and equipped with an extra layer, or jacket, to reduce the risk of punctures and fires.
In June 2018, a BNSF train carrying Canadian oil derailed in Doon, Iowa, creating a pileup of 33 cars that were retrofitted to meet the DOT-117 standard. Ten of them were punctured, spilling 160,000 gallons of oil into the flood-swollen Rock River.
In both derailments, it's possible the enhanced features reduced the overall impact. Still, they demonstrated the risks that remain as oil continues to move by rail.
A catastrophic derailment in Quebec accelerated efforts by U.S. and Canadian officials to improve the safety of oil trains.
On July 6, 2013, a train carrying Bakken oil lost its brakes and rolled downhill into the town of Lac Megantic. Forty-seven people were killed in the massive fire that resulted.
https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/transportation/2018/09/27/canada-moves-improve-oil-train-safety-while-u-s-slower-track/1424934002/
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Wehrum Outlines Playbook For Obama Rule Rollbacks
Sep 27, 2018 | E&E Greenwire
By Sean Reilly
EPA is poised to move ahead as early as next week with a formal proposal to reconsider its 2012 power plant mercury rule, according to agency air chief Bill Wehrum.
Agency officials have been "working very hard" on the draft rule to revisit what are officially known as the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards; they hope to send a proposal to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review within the next few days, Wehrum told reporters yesterday after speaking at an afternoon meeting of the agency's Clean Air Act Advisory Committee.
While the agency is still working on the exact contours, the proposal could address EPA's 2000 determination that it was "appropriate and necessary" under the Clean Air Act to regulate releases of mercury and other hazardous pollutants from coal-fired power plants, along with some implementation aspects, Wehrum indicated.
Wehrum also voiced hope that once the proposal goes to OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, the review could be completed quickly enough to proceed with public release in the "relatively near future."
Asked whether power producers, which largely came into compliance with the regulations two years ago, should expect to see any changes to specific emissions standards, he replied only, "Stay tuned."
Wehrum also confirmed yesterday that officials are mulling repeal of another Obama-era rule that ordered states to end waivers for emissions violations related to plant startups, shutdowns and malfunctions, often known in regulatory shorthand as "SSM."
He acknowledged a "very robust discussion" within EPA's air office surrounding the 2015 rule that required three dozen states to rewrite their state implementation plans (SIPs) to end those exemptions.
As E&E News reported earlier this week, a July entry in Wehrum's official calendar showed a meeting held to discuss "initiating" the rule's withdrawal (E&E News PM, Sept. 25). Yesterday, however, he hedged when queried if the agency plans to take that step.
"We're not sure yet," he said after noting that the final decision will rest with acting EPA chief Andrew Wheeler. "That's one of the things we're talking about." But Wehrum said he disagreed with some facets of the rule.
The agency has no timetable for a decision, he said, adding that "the conversation is not as far along as some of the other things we've been working on."
The impromptu news conference came just after he spoke to the committee, which he chairs and is charged with providing outside advice on Clean Air Act implementation issues. Its members, numbering almost 40, include representatives of industry, labor and environmental groups, along with state and local government officials and academics.
The meeting was the committee's first since December, not long after Wehrum rejoined EPA as air chief. Then, he outlined plans to take a more targeted regulatory strategy, in contrast with the sweeping game plan employed during his previous stint in the air office during the George W. Bush administration.
"We've been following that strategy, and I think to good effect," Wehrum said in outlining the agency's work to ease application of the New Source Review pre-construction permitting program and other endeavors. Following up on a recently released "road map" for EPA's regional haze program, Wehrum said it had been "severely misapplied" under the Obama administration. Beyond the goal of improving visibility in national parks, Wehrum said, it became part of a strategy directed at coal-fired power plants. "We're not going to do that anymore," he said.
Also speaking to the committee were two career air officials, Bill Charmley and Kevin Culligan, who respectively discussed the Trump administration's proposals to roll back Obama-era vehicle fuel efficiency standards and to replace President Obama's Clean Power Plan, which was geared toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the coal-fired power sector.
In response to sometimes critical questions, all three generally stressed that the administration is working within the framework of applicable laws and remains open to changes.
As he has in the past, Wehrum conceded the particular challenge of revisiting the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards, given that they have long since gone into effect.
This summer, a coalition of utility trade groups urged him to leave the standards intact, albeit possibly with some technical changes (Greenwire, July 11) . Last month, two senior senators told him in a letter that reconsideration of the standards "doesn't make sense" (E&E Daily, Aug. 27).
"I've had many people come through my office and say, 'You should leave well enough alone,'" Wehrum told the committee yesterday.
But he pointed to the Supreme Court's 2015 ruling that EPA had not properly considered compliance costs when making the "appropriate and necessary" determination. While the Obama administration the next year produced a "supplemental finding" that reaffirmed its earlier decision, "we don't necessarily agree with that," Wehrum told reporters later.
https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/2018/09/27/stories/1060099949
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