The TSCA has several subchapters, the second of which authorizes the EPA
to impose laws for asbestos abatement in schools and requires accreditation
of persons who inspect for asbestos-containing materials (the first subchap-
ter treats the regulation of the aforementioned PCB products). The other
subchapters require the EPA to publish a guide to radon health risks, perform
studies of radon levels in schools and federal buildings, identify sources of
lead contamination in the environment, regulate amounts of lead allowed in
products, including paint and toys, and establish state programs to monitor
and reduce lead exposures.
The TSCA supplements other Federal statutes, too, including the Clean Air
Act and the Toxic Release Inventory under the Emergency Planning and
Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA). As a result of the TSCA, the EPA has
been negotiating with firms such as General Electric for the remediation of
areas such as the upper Hudson River, which is contaminated with PCBs.
Registration, Evaluation, Authorization
of Chemicals (REACH)
Until its final enactment on June 1, 2007, REACH (EC 1907/2006) was a matter
not only of serious legislative debate, but also on the receiving end of bitter
condemnation. And though it may still be grounds for all sorts of feelings,
good and bad, the fact is that its regulations will force businesses around the
world to make some excruciating decisions about tens of thousands of sub-
stances by June 2008, because that is the date of the first regulatory deadline
set to affect existing chemical products. REACH, whose provisions will be
phased-in over 11 years, now replaces 40 existing pieces of legislation in the
European Union (EU). Companies can find explanations of REACH in the guid-
ance documents, on the EU’s REACH web site (see Figure 12-1) and a number
of help desks are available for consultation. The European Commission is
slated to conduct a series of reviews of REACH Annexes until December 2008
(Annexes I, IV, V, XI, XIII).
What REACH says
The TSCA (which hasn’t been amended since its enactment over 30 years
ago) is to REACH what a speck of dust is to the sun. The difference between
them — to say nothing of both the immediate and long-term consequences of
the latter — is enormous. Remember our discussion on the difference
between substances and materials? Well, this is where those differences
come into play even as they are obliterated. Forget materials. REACH forces
companies to comply on the level of substances — an enormous task com-
pared to complying with the TSCA.
230 Part III: Going Green
