The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on July 25, 2024, that it is proposing to designate acetaldehyde, acrylonitrile, benzenamine, vinyl chloride, and 4,4-methylene bis(2-chloroaniline) (MBOCA) as high-priority substances (HPS) for risk evaluation under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). 89 Fed. Reg. 60420. EPA is providing a 90-day comment period, during which interested persons may submit comments on the proposed designations of these chemicals as HPSs for risk evaluation. EPA states that it is interested in comments that would inform the exposure and hazard assessments and the identification of conditions of use (COU) for these chemicals.
Comments are due October 23, 2024.
As reported in our December 27, 2023, memorandum, in December 2023, EPA began the process to prioritize these five chemicals for risk evaluation. EPA requested relevant information for each, including but not limited to, the chemical’s hazard and exposure potential; the chemical’s persistence and bioaccumulation; potentially exposed or susceptible subpopulations relevant to the prioritization; whether there is any storage of the chemical near significant sources of drinking water; the chemical’s COUs or significant changes in COUs, including information regarding trade names; the chemical’s production volume or significant changes in production volume; and any other information relevant to the potential risks of the chemical that might be relevant to the designation of the chemical’s priority for risk evaluation. For more information, please read the full memorandum.
