From: Public Radio International

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is in the middle of a lengthy review of the chemical triclosan — a product that’s in countless consumer products like toothpaste and soap. There’s a movement to try and get the product more stringently regulated in the United States — or banned outright. And they might have just gotten a boost from Canada.

Triclosan has been around for 40 years. For nearly all that time U.S. officials have been investigating the chemical’s safety and effectiveness. Now the Canadian government has just declared the antibacterial agent an environmental toxin, and has proposed regulations to curtail its use in Canada.

The FDA review is supposed to be completed by winter 2012.

For more information see the above link.

From the Canada Gazette:

An order deleting 11 substances from part I of the Non-domestic Substances List under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act has been published by Canada’s Minister of the Environment in the Canada Gazette.

The order also removes aceto(2-carboxyphenyl)(2-methoxyphenyl)oxotriazaalkene from part II of the list.

We will keep you informed on any further changes to the Non-domestic Substances List.

From Environment Canada:

Canada’s Environment Minister, the Honourable Peter Kent, today announced that the Government of Canada has decided siloxane D5 is not harmful to the environment.

“This decision follows a thorough analysis of the Siloxane D5 Board of Review’s report, all existing available scientific information, and on-going international regulatory activities,” said Minister Kent. “It underlines our commitment to reach fact-based conclusions to protect Canadians’ health and the environment.”

Decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5) is an odorless, colourless liquid found in a number of personal care products, including deodorants, antiperspirants, cosmetics, shampoos, and body lotions. It is used in the production of silicone polymers and may also be used as a dry-cleaning solvent and in industrial cleaning.

Minister Kent received the Siloxane D5 Board of Review’s report last fall. The Minister convened the Board of Review in August 2010 with the mandate to consider information in the original Government of Canada 2009 siloxane D5 screening assessment, as well as new scientific information subsequently available. Based on the information before it, the Board concluded that siloxane D5 is not harmful to the environment.

Siloxane D5 is one of the chemicals identified under Canada’s Chemicals Management Plan. The Plan takes immediate action to regulate chemicals harmful to human health or the environment and aims to make Canada a world leader in assessing and regulating chemicals used in thousands of industrial and consumer products.

For more information contact the Office of the Minister of the Environment @ 819-997-1441

From: Environment Canada

Canada’s Environment Minister, the Honourable Peter Kent, today announced the addition of 41 unique substances to the Environmental Emergency Regulations. The substances include styrene, an explosive chemical used to make polystyrene plastic containers, and ammonium nitrate, a fertilizer.

Thirty-three substances in use in Canadian commerce, in several physical states, and some substances classed in their different forms are now added to the Environmental Emergency Regulations, for a total of 41 unique listed additions.

Facilities that handle these 41 listed substances at or above regulated quantities are required to develop environmental emergency (E2) plans, if they are not already in place.

The complete list of substance and details of the amendments to the Environmental Emergency Regulations can be found at  http://www.ec.gc.ca/ee-ue/default.asp?lang=En&xml=47FA3987-D3B8-40D8-BD6E-D32D0C9AB586.

Click on the links for more information.

Today, a new video has been released in our  ‘Nexreg on Compliance’ video series, which addresses hazard communication (HazCom) issues for jurisdictions such as Canada, the United States and the   European Union.  The videos can be found on Nexreg’s YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/Nexreg.

• New Canadian VOC ( Volatile Organic Compound) Regulations

A look at the state of Canadian VOC ( Volatile Organic Compound) regulations for architectural coatings, automotive refinishing products and certain consumer products.

Nexreg plans on adding a new video every Friday.  The questions answered in the video series will come from viewer requests, so please   send your questions to info@nexreg.com.

To learn more about Nexreg Compliance please visit www.nexreg.com or call our toll-free line at (866)361-3032.

From Environment Canada – The Government of Canada Takes Action to Reduce VOC Emissions from the Architectural Coatings Sector:

The Minister of the Environment, Jim Prentice, [yesterday] announced new regulations to reduce emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from the architectural coatings sector through products such as paints, finishes, dyes, and varnishes. VOCs are pollutants that contribute to the formation of ground-level ozone and particulate matter, two key smog components.

The regulations set maximum VOC concentration limits for 53 categories of coatings and will apply to all products made, imported, sold, or marketed in Canada. They also cover the use of traffic marking coatings. The requirements, which are similar to requirements in the United States, were established pursuant to consultations with sector stakeholders.

Click on the links for more information.

Relevant Nexreg Compliance Links: CCCR compliance, WHMIS MSDS authoring, MSDS authoring

From Marketwire:

New regulations announced today will reduce Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) in automotive refinishing products. VOCs found in these products contribute to the creation of smog, which is harmful to both human health and the environment…

The regulations introduce VOC concentration limits for 14 categories of coatings and surface cleaners, which are used for refinishing or repairing the painted surfaces of automobiles, trucks, and other mobile equipment. These regulations were developed following extensive stakeholder consultation. Once in force, the VOC concentration limits will align with the requirements of leading jurisdictions in the development of VOC product regulations, such as California and the European Union…

The Government of Canada added VOCs to the List of Toxic Substances in Schedule 1 of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA 1999) on June 12, 2003. This addition gave the government the authority to develop VOC control instruments, such as these regulations, under CEPA 1999.

For more information on the regulations to reduce VOC emissions from consumer and commercial products visit www.ec.gc.ca/nopp/voc.

Click on the above link for more information.

Relevant Nexreg Compliance Links: Nexreg, CCCR Consumer Label Reviews, WHMIS MSDS Authoring.

From Canada.com:

Canada on Saturday will become the first country to formally declare bisphenol A hazardous to human health and officially inform the baby-product industry it will no longer be able to use the chemical in baby bottles.

Canada’s announcement comes six months after Health Minister Tony Clement surprised the chemical industry by announcing the government’s plan to place bisphenol A on its list of toxic substances and ban its use in baby bottles.

In unveiling the “precautionary and prudent” move, Clement proposed a limited ban of the widely used chemical, also found in hard plastic sports bottles and the lining of food cans.

Click on the above link for more information.

Relevant Nexreg Compliance Links: Nexreg, CCCR Consumer Label Reviews, WHMIS MSDS Authoring.

From The Canadian Press:

The proposed legislation would make Ontario the first province in Canada to require big companies to track and report on their use of toxic chemicals, as well as develop plans to cut their use of the substances, he said.

But it’s up to businesses to decide if they want to follow through with those plans, Gerretsen said…

The federal government already requires big companies to report how much pollution is being released from their plants. But they don’t have to say how much harmful material is used, or come up with a reduction plan…

A draft list of about 45 different hazardous substances, including chlorine, formaldehyde and asbestos, will be up for public consultation.

Click on the above link for more information.  More information is also available from the Ontario Ministry of the Environment.

Relevant Nexreg Compliance Links: Nexreg, CCCR Consumer Label Reviews, WHMIS MSDS Authoring.

A press release from the Government of Canada:

Of the 19 substances included in Batch 5, two substances are proposed to be of concern to human health (Acrylamide and TCEP (Tris(2-chloroethyl)) phosphate). Current information indicates that the remaining 17 substances are of no concern to human health or the environment.

Of these remaining 17 substances, one is no longer used in Canada (Disperse Orange 5) and one is used primarily as a pesticide (Chloroacetamide) and this use will be discontinued later this year. Significant New Activity provisions are being proposed to manage the risks associated with these two substances. These provisions will prevent these substances from being used in the future without undergoing a new series of assessments.

Click on the above link for more information.