The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released a series of actions, under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), on four different chemicals that raise serious health or environmental concerns.
Phthalates (used to improve the properties of plastics), short-chain chlorinated paraffins (mainly used in extreme pressure lubricants), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (used as flame retardants) and perfluorinated chemicals (used commonly in diverse products) are of concern, according to the EPA.
The EPA will prepare a chemicals of concern list and will launch a process that may lead to regulations requiring significant risk reduction measures to protect human health and the environment, safety.blr.com said.
Recently, three US companies agreed to phase out DecaBDE, a widely used fire-retardant chemical that may potentially cause cancer and impact brain function, the EPA said.
About 60,000 substances had been listed in the EPA's inventory of existing chemicals when the TSCA was passed in 1976 and today, an additional 20,000 substances have been added, the agency said.
