EPA to require production data every five years

Beginning in 2006, chemical manufacturers will have to report key production information to EPA every five years, instead of every four years, as they have done for two decades. By switching the cycle of these reports from every four years to twice a decade, companies will save money "while still meeting the agency's basic information needs," EPA said in a regulation issued on Dec. 19, 2005. A number of chemical companies and chemical industry trade associations supported this change. EPA collects the data on domestic production, importation, processing, and use of commercial chemicals under the Toxic Substances Control Act. This requirement applies to substances manufactured or imported in quantities of 25,000 lb or more annually at any single site. Chemical manufacturers are due to send EPA their next reports in late 2006. While the reports have always covered organic substances, the 2006 submissions will be the first to include data on inorganic compounds.