TSCA Advisory 99 - III

On August 26, 1999, EPA published a proposed rule that, if adopted, will change dramatically the reporting requirements under the TSCA Inventory Update Rule ("IUR"). The proposed amendments would significantly increase the reporting burden for any manufacturing facility producing at least 25,000 pounds per year of a reportable substance. For larger volume manufacturers, the added reporting requirements will be even greater, and may require substantial additional administrative resources and new reporting and data collection systems.

The proposed rule would establish two reporting thresholds: an initial reporting threshold, which would trigger the basic reporting requirement, and a "larger-volume" threshold, which would trigger requirements for additional information. Interestingly, the initial reporting threshold would be raised from the current level of 10,000 pounds per year to 25,000 pounds, with the result that smaller-scale manufacturers may no longer have to submit IUR reports. Companies exceeding the 25,000 pound threshold, however, would have greater reporting obligations than before. The proposed rule would add the obligation for such manufacturers to estimate the number of workers "reasonably likely" to be exposed to each chemical substance, and to report the physical form and the average and maximum concentrations of each reportable substance as they leave the facility.

The second, "larger-volume," reporting threshold would be set at 300,000 pounds. In addition to the reporting requirements described above, this threshold would trigger obligations to submit detailed information about the processing and use of reportable substances not only at sites that are under the direct control of the manufacturer, but also at any site that receives such substances from the company directly or indirectly (including through a broker/distributor, from a customer of the company, etc.). The information required from "larger-volume" manufacturers includes data about chemical processing activities, production volumes, worker exposure rates, numbers and types of sites receiving reported substances, consumer product uses, and production volumes attributable to designated consumer products. Since the rule indicates no minimum amount of a chemical that must be received before it is reportable, larger-volume chemical manufacturers will have to submit detailed information about all of the above topics for every customer or distributor that receives even a small amount of a reportable chemical.

EPA has scheduled a public meeting to discuss the proposal on Monday, October 4, 1999, in Washington D.C. The deadline for filing comments on the proposed regulation is October 25, 1999. If you would like further information regarding TSCA, please call the persons identified below:

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