PCBs AND ASSOCIATED AROMATICS 861
June 28, 1976: Westinghouse indicated to its managers
on June 28, 1976 that it would cease manufacture of Inerteen
Transformers after December 31, 1976.
July, 1976: Publication of the “Final Report of the
Subcommittee on the Health Effects of polychlorinated and
polybrominated biphenyls; Dept. of Health, Education and
Welfare, Washington.
July 23, 1976: Federal Register 41 , 30468 (1976): EPA
published proposed toxic pollutant effluent standards for
PCBs.
August, 1976: New York Times Magazine article on PCBs
in the Hudson: “Last August, after months of negotiations,
GE agreed to pay the State Department of Environmental
Conservation, $3 million to help restore the river and another
$1 million for research. The state will chip in $3 million of
its own for restoration.... In fact, until very recently, it had
a permit issued by the EPA and endorsed by the state–that
specifically authorized it to discharge up to 30 pounds of
PCBs into the river daily. By contributing $3 million of its
own toward restoration as part of the agreement the DEC has
tacitly acknowledged its own failure as a watchdog.”.... “The
August agreement, by contrast, was accomplished by nego-
tiation after a rigorous but comparatively swift ex- judicial
hearing sponsored by the DEC and chaired by a law professor
from Columbia University. The whole process took less than
a year. And while the parties never saw the inside of a court-
room, the agreement nonetheless puts American companies
on notice that they may be held responsible for what they do
to the environment even when they have not been specifically
prohibited from doing it.”
Seven California class 1 landfills were listed as approved
disposition service companies together with nine other, prin-
cipally incineration, options.
August 24, 1976: Rep. Gilbert Gude (R-MD) proposed
a last-minute amendment to the House version of the Toxic
Substances Control Act singling out PCBs for special restric-
tions. The August 24, 1976 edition of the New York Times
reported: “The House of Representatives voted 319–45 to
ban within three years the manufacture of PCBs, a class of
chemicals that has been linked to cancer and birth defects,
water pollution and wildlife contamination... some House
members said during today’s debate that they felt that ban-
ning PCBs was a moral responsibility to the people... ”.
In October 1976, Congress passed the Toxic Substances
Control Act. The continued use of PCBs in totally enclosed
systems was allowed.
December 8, 1976: Federal Register 41 , 53692 (1976):
Panel discussion/formation of PCB work group.
As of December 31, 1976 the Westinghouse South
Boston, Virginia Small Power Transformer Division ceased
manufacture of Inerteen transformers.
Instructions for handling Inerteen ® insulating fluid
P.D.S. 54201 CM and Installation and maintenance of
Inerteen transformers were reissued from Westinghouse’s
Small Power Transformer Division in February 1976
[Westinghouse, 1976a]. Also included was information on
actions to be taken when an Inerteen transformer was found
to be leaking in transit.As of December 31, 1976 the South Boston, Virginia
Small Power Transformer Division ceased manufacture of
Inerteen transformers.
A National conference on PCBs sponsored by EPA was
held in November 1975 in Chicago.1977January 19, 1977: Federal Register 42 , 3701 (1977): Notice
of Jan. 24, 1977 public meeting.
February 2, 1977: Federal Register 42 , 6531 (1977):
Effluent Standard Regulations.
Section 307 (a) of the Federal Water Pollution Control
Act required the EPA to publish a list of toxic pollutants, and
submit proposed and final effluent standards for toxic pollut-
ants. PCBs were one of the nine toxic pollutants contained
in EPA’s final listing of proposed pollutants on September
7, 1973 but did not publish the final toxic pollutant effluent
standards for PCBs until February 3, 1977.
April 1, 1977: The FDA proposed the reduction of tem-
porary tolerances for PCBs in milk, dairy products, poultry,
eggs, fish and shell-fish.
April 21, 1977: Federal Register 42 , 20640 (1977):
Proposed procedures for rule-making under Section 6
of TSCA.
May 24, 1977: Federal Register 42 , 26564 (1977):
Proposed marking and disposal regulations.
July 15, 1977: Federal Register 42 , 36484 (1977): Deadline
for reply comment period to proposed marking and disposal
regulations of May 24, 1977.
Monsanto terminated the manufacture of PCBs in July
1977.
Effective August 31, 1977 Monsanto stopped accepting
PCB waste returns.1978February 17, 1978: Federal Register 43 , 7150 (1978): EPA
promulgated marking and disposal regulations.
April 21, 1978: Federal Register 43 , 17060 (1978):
National Cancer Institute report on the carcinogenicity of
Aroclor 1254.
June 7, 1978: Federal Register 43 , 24802 (1978):
Proposed PCB ban regulations.
June 7, 1978: Federal Register 43 , 24818 (1978):
Requires notification of intent to export PCBs.
July 18, 1978: Federal Register 43 , 30882 (1978): List of
approved PCB disposal facilities.
August 2, 1978: Federal Register 43 , 33918 (1978):
Corrections to marking and disposal regulations.
August 25, 1978: Federal Register 43 , 38057 (1978):
Incorporates hearing record of effluent standard regulations
into hearing record for ban regulations.
August 25, 1978: Federal Register 43 , 38087 (1978):
List of Approved PCB disposal facilities.
October 26, 1978: Federal Register 43 , 50041 (1978):
List of approved PCB disposal facilities.C016_003_r03.indd 861C016_003_r03.indd 861 11/18/2005 1:12:25 PM11/18/2005 1:12:25 PM