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The Obama administration intends to seek a major overhaul of the 33-year-old federal law regulating the safety of chemicals used in a wide range of consumer products, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency announced last night.
EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson said her agency needs more authority to assess the safety of the thousands of chemicals in use in commerce, and to restrict and even ban chemicals it deems a health or environmental risk. She laid out the administration's goals for reforming the law in a speech Tuesday night in San Francisco.
"Everything from our cars to the cell phones we have in our pockets are constructed with plastics and chemical additives," Jackson said. With low levels of chemicals used in consumer products showing up in streams, food and water and even in people's bodies, the EPA administrator said, there is growing public concern about the health and safety risks posed by such exposures.
"Some chemicals may be risk-free even though we can detect them," she said, but acknowledged that the public is "understandably anxious and confused" about reports of lead in children's toys, dioxin in fish and research suggesting children are more susceptible to chemical exposures than adults.
The Obama administration's support for reforming the widely criticized Toxic Substances Control Act comes as consumer and environmental groups and even the chemical industry agree on the need to improve the nation's oversight of chemical risks in commerce. The law has not been changed substantially since it was enacted in 1976, and Jackson said the EPA has been hamstrung by its flaws and unable to adequately assess chemicals or take action when it finds a problem.
A handful of chemicals have been restricted or banned, and none since a federal court overturned an EPA ban on asbestos in 1989.
Jackson said new chemicals proposed for the marketplace must be deemed safe, and her agency needs more power to make manufacturers produce the data to demonstrate their safety. She also wants to review the safety of chemicals currently in use, focusing first on those where scientists and health experts have raised concerns.
Legislation to reform the toxic-substance law is expected to be introduced soon in Congress. A similar measure failed last year.
While working with lawmakers on new rules, the EPA administrator said her agency would use its existing legal authority to identify existing chemicals warranting possible regulatory action, based on concerns already raised by research. It expects to propose action on a handful by December.
Environmental and industry groups welcomed the administration's support for revising the law on toxic substances. "It's a tremendous step forward," said Richard Wiles, head of the Environmental Working Group, a Washington-based environmental group. He noted that the George W. Bush administration had opposed any significant changes in the law.
Cal Dooley, president and chief executive officer of the American Chemistry Council, representing manufacturers, said the industry also wants the law "modernized" to boost public confidence in their products and to head off a growing patchwork of state laws and regulations.
He said the principles outlined by Jackson were "in most respects very closely aligned" with proposals made last month by his industry group.
"We are convinced through testing in our own industry that our products are safe," Dooley said. But he said the industry seeks "validation" from regulators who have the necessary scientific information to make that determination.
EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson said her agency needs more authority to assess the safety of the thousands of chemicals in use in commerce, and to restrict and even ban chemicals it deems a health or environmental risk. She laid out the administration's goals for reforming the law in a speech Tuesday night in San Francisco.
"Everything from our cars to the cell phones we have in our pockets are constructed with plastics and chemical additives," Jackson said. With low levels of chemicals used in consumer products showing up in streams, food and water and even in people's bodies, the EPA administrator said, there is growing public concern about the health and safety risks posed by such exposures.
"Some chemicals may be risk-free even though we can detect them," she said, but acknowledged that the public is "understandably anxious and confused" about reports of lead in children's toys, dioxin in fish and research suggesting children are more susceptible to chemical exposures than adults.
The Obama administration's support for reforming the widely criticized Toxic Substances Control Act comes as consumer and environmental groups and even the chemical industry agree on the need to improve the nation's oversight of chemical risks in commerce. The law has not been changed substantially since it was enacted in 1976, and Jackson said the EPA has been hamstrung by its flaws and unable to adequately assess chemicals or take action when it finds a problem.
A handful of chemicals have been restricted or banned, and none since a federal court overturned an EPA ban on asbestos in 1989.
Jackson said new chemicals proposed for the marketplace must be deemed safe, and her agency needs more power to make manufacturers produce the data to demonstrate their safety. She also wants to review the safety of chemicals currently in use, focusing first on those where scientists and health experts have raised concerns.
Legislation to reform the toxic-substance law is expected to be introduced soon in Congress. A similar measure failed last year.
While working with lawmakers on new rules, the EPA administrator said her agency would use its existing legal authority to identify existing chemicals warranting possible regulatory action, based on concerns already raised by research. It expects to propose action on a handful by December.
Environmental and industry groups welcomed the administration's support for revising the law on toxic substances. "It's a tremendous step forward," said Richard Wiles, head of the Environmental Working Group, a Washington-based environmental group. He noted that the George W. Bush administration had opposed any significant changes in the law.
Cal Dooley, president and chief executive officer of the American Chemistry Council, representing manufacturers, said the industry also wants the law "modernized" to boost public confidence in their products and to head off a growing patchwork of state laws and regulations.
He said the principles outlined by Jackson were "in most respects very closely aligned" with proposals made last month by his industry group.
"We are convinced through testing in our own industry that our products are safe," Dooley said. But he said the industry seeks "validation" from regulators who have the necessary scientific information to make that determination.
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