CPSC Announces Second Advisory Panel Meeting on Phthalates
The Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced that the second meeting of the Chronic Hazard Advisory Panel (CHAP) on phthalates and phthalate substitutes will be held on July 26-28, 2010 in Bethesda, Maryland.
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(In addition to establishing permanent and interim bans1 of certain phthalates in children’s toys and child care articles, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA) required the establishment of a CHAP to study the effects on children’s health, as well as the effects on pregnant women and other susceptible individuals, of all phthalates and phthalate alternatives. Within two years of its appointment, the panel must recommend to CPSC whether any phthalates or phthalate alternatives other than those permanently banned should be declared banned hazardous substances. The first meeting of the CHAP was held on April 14-15, 2010.)
Written comments are due by July 12, 2010. Requests to present oral comments are due by July 1, 2010.
Public Can Attend Meeting, Live Webcast also Available
Members of the public who wish to attend the meeting are requested to preregister online at http://www.cpsc.gov/cgibin/chap.aspx. The meeting will also be available live via webcast on July 26 and July 27 and by prerecorded webcast on July 28 at http://www.cpsc.gov/webcast . Registration is not necessary to view the webcast.
CHAP Interested in Comments on Hazard, Exposure, Risk Posed by Phthalates
The CHAP is seeking public comment on issues relating to the hazard, exposure, and risk posed by phthalates and phthalate substitutes from all sources of exposure, and especially in children’s products. The CHAP is especially interested in comments and data pertaining to (partial list):
- Information on current and anticipated future uses of phthalates and phthalate substitutes in products.
- Data on the types and levels of phthalates and phthalate substitutes found in consumer products, cosmetics, pharmaceutical drugs, medical devices, food, food supplements, food packaging, and pesticides.
- Information on the relative importance of different sources, routes, and pathways of exposure to phthalates in the general population, expectant mothers, and children.
- Information relating to human exposure to phthalates and phthalate substitutes.
- Toxicity data on the full range of phthalates and phthalate substitutes in commercial use, especially unpublished or soon-to-be-published studies.
- Information relating to assessing the cumulative (combined) risk from multiple phthalates, including dose response data, methodology, which health endpoint (or endpoints) is the most relevant to human risk assessment, and which phthalate substitutes or other compounds may contribute to the combined risk.
1The CPSIA imposed both permanent and interim bans on certain phthalates in specified children’s products beginning February 10, 2009 as follows: (1) children’s toys or child care articles containing more than 0.1% of benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP), dibutyl phthalate (DBP), or di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) were permanently prohibited; and (2) children’s toys that can be placed in a child’s mouth or child care articles containing more than 0.1% of diisodecyl phthalate (DIDP), diisononyl phthalate (DINP), or di-n-octyl phthalate (DnOP) were prohibited, on an interim basis until the CPSC determines whether to continue the ban.
(See ITT’s Online Archives or 05/07/10 news, 10050719, for BP summary of CPSC posting various reports that were provided to the CHAP during its first meeting.
See ITT’s Online Archives or 05/21/10 news, 10052139, for BP summary announcing that CPSC was considering this second CHAP meeting.)