EPA Releases Data On Manufacturing, Processing, And Use Of Most Widely Produced Chemicals

Recent information on manufacturing, processing, and use of the most widely produced chemicals in the U.S., as submitted by chemical makers to EPA, is now available to the public. Released last week, this information includes data about substances used in children’s and other consumer products as of 2011. EPA collects chemical data periodically from facilities where site-specific production or import volume exceeds 25,000 lb per year. Recent industry reports cover more than 7,600 chemicals and include significantly fewer claims of confidentiality than did the reports from 2006, EPA says. The agency does not release information to the public that companies claim and substantiate as trade secrets in their reports. The agency’s outgoing administrator, Lisa P. Jackson, said before she left the agency last week that the data “will help EPA and others better assess chemicals, evaluate potential exposures and use, and expand efforts to encourage the use of safer chemicals.” The American Chemistry Council, a chemical industry group, says, “This information will give EPA a clearer picture of how chemicals are used in commercial and consumer products, including in products intended for use by children.”