EPA Sends PBT TSCA Final Rule to OMB

Yesterday the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had received a final rule from the EPA on “Decabromodiphenyl Ether and Phenol, Isopropylated Phosphate (3:1); Revision to the Regulations of Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and Toxic Chemicals Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)”.  The notice of proposed rulemaking for this action was published on November 24^th, 2023.

According to the Spring 2024 Unified Agenda entry for this rulemaking:

“The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing revisions to the regulations for decabromodiphenyl ether (decaBDE) and phenol, isopropylated phosphate (3:1) (PIP (3:1)), two of the five persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) chemicals addressed in final rules issued under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) in January 2021. After receiving additional comments following the issuance of the 2021 PBT final rules, the Agency has determined that revisions to the decaBDE and PIP (3:1) regulations are necessary to address implementation issues and to reduce further exposures. As required under TSCA, these proposed requirements would, if finalized, reduce the potential for exposures to humans and the environment to decaBDE and PIP (3:1) to the extent practicable. The Agency is not proposing to revise the existing regulations for the other three PBT chemicals (2,4,6-TTBP, HCBD, and PCTP) at this time.”

The EPA has additional information available on their “Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and Toxic (PBT) Chemicals under TSCA Section 6(h)” web page.