The Canary Report

Change is coming on U.S. toxic chemical policy

Posted on Dec 09, 2009 by Susie Collins in Blog, Government Regulation, Policy, Social Justice, Susie Collins

A great report today from the Huffington Post on the work currently being done in Washington DC to change toxic chemical policy.

While Afghanistan, the economy, Copenhagen and health care grabbed headlines this week, on December 2nd, Senators Frank Lautenberg and Barbara Boxer, who chairs the Senate Environment & Public Works committee, held a hearing on an issue that could significantly influence three out of four of those big ticket items. That issue is chemicals – the synthetic and industrial chemicals, largely petrochemical in origin that permeate every aspect of our lives – and the inadequacies of TSCA (Toxic Substances Control Act), the primary law aimed at protecting Americans from chemical hazards.

The report also covers introduction of the Endocrine Disruption Prevention Act of 2009 by Senator John Kerry and Representative Jim Moran. The Environmental Working Group’s study is included as reference (they are doing God’s work in my opinion). EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson has called for increased research and development of safer chemicals through green chemistry. Coinciding with the Senate hearing was a statement signed by 13 states also calling for TSCA reform.

The coming changes might not impact the lives of people with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity in real time, but the current paradigm on chemical policy, the one that got most of us sick in the first place, is about to get trounced.

Link

Tags: Chemicals, Environment, Environmental Health, MCS, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, Policy