Nano and Other Emerging Chemical Technologies Law Blog: Lawyer & Attorney : Bergeson & Campbell Law Firm : Nanotech and Chemical Legal Developments

Australia’s National Industrial Notification and Assessment Scheme (NICNAS) recently issued guidance on the new chemical requirements for the notification and assessment of industrial nanomaterials that are considered to be new chemicals. The new administrative arrangements will be effective from January 1, 2011, and will apply to any new chemical that falls under the following working definition of “industrial nanomaterial”:

. . . industrial materials intentionally produced, manufactured or engineered to have unique properties or specific composition at the nanoscale, that is a size range typically between 1 [nanometer (nm)] and 100 nm, and is either a nano-object (i.e. that is confined in one, two, or three dimensions at the nanoscale) or is nanostructured (i.e. having an internal or surface structure at the nanoscale).

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On July 20, 2010, Representative Janice Schakowsky (D-IL) introduced the Safe Cosmetics Act of 2010 (H.R. 5786), which would amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) “to ensure the safe use of cosmetics.” Under the bill, the Secretary of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would:

1. Monitor developments in the scientific understanding of any adverse health effects related to the use of nanotechnology in the formulation of cosmetics; and
2. Consider scale-specific hazard properties of ingredients when conducting or reviewing safety substantiation of cosmetic ingredients.

Regarding cosmetic and ingredient statements, the bill would require manufacturers to submit electronically a statement containing certain information, including “the ingredient list as it appears on the cosmetic label or insert, including the particle size of any nanoscale cosmetic ingredients.” The bill would also allow the FDA Secretary to require that:

1. Minerals and other particulate ingredients be labeled as ‘nano-scale’ on a cosmetic ingredient label or list if not less than one dimension is 100 nanometers (nm) or smaller for not less than one percent of the ingredient particles in the cosmetic; and
2. Other ingredients in a cosmetic be designated with scale-specific information on a cosmetic ingredient label or list if such ingredients possess scale-specific hazard properties.

The bill was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, as well as the Committee on Education and Labor.

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On July 12, 2010, the European Commission (EC) opened a public consultation on the pre-consultation opinion of the Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR) entitled “Scientific Basis for the Definition of the Term ‘Nanomaterial.’” The EC states that its services need a working definition for the term “nanomaterial” to ensure the consistency of forthcoming regulatory developments, to guide the effective implementation of existing regulations, and to contribute to international work and dialogue on nanotechnology definitions. In its opinion, SCENIHR notes that the commonly used definition of the nanoscale is having a size between approximately 1 and 100 nanometers (nm). SCENIHR states, however, that there is no scientific evidence in favor of a single upper limit, and that there is no scientific evidence to qualify the appropriateness of the 100 nm value. According to SCENIHR, there is a need for a more elaborate description to identify unequivocally a nanomaterial or a product containing a nanomaterial for various European Union (EU) regulatory bodies. In its opinion, SCENIHR provides advice on the essential scientific elements of a working definition for the term “nanomaterial” for regulatory purposes, and discusses existing definitions formulated by various bodies. SCENIHR proposes to define an enforceable definition of “nanomaterial” for regulatory use by setting an upper limit for nanomaterial size, and adding to the proposed limit additional guidance (requirements) specific for the intended regulation. SCENIHR states:

Crucial in the guidance that needs to be provided is the extended description of the nanoscale. Merely defining single upper and lower cut-off limits is not sufficient in view of the size distributions occurring in manufactured nanomaterials. Although many nanomaterials are produced for specific properties at the nanoscale, at the moment it is not possible to identify a specific size or a specific generic property that is suddenly introduced or changed with size. Alternatively, a tiered approach may be required depending on the amount of information known for any specifically engineered nanomaterial and its proposed use.

Comments are due September 15, 2010.

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On May 4, 2010, the European Parliament (EP) Committee on the Environment, Public Health, and Food Safety voted on draft legislation regarding “novel foods,” which are defined as those that have not been consumed to a significant degree in the European Union (EU) before May 1997. Under the legislation, foods produced by nanotechnology processes would be required to undergo risk assessment before being approved for use, and approved products would be subject to labeling requirements. According to the Committee, foods produced by nanotechnology processes must remain excluded from the European Community (EC) list until they have undergone specific and adequate risk assessments, and the possible health effects of materials at nanoscale are better understood. The draft legislation would define nanomaterials as having one or more dimensions less than 100 nanometers (nm). All ingredients present in nano-form would need to be clearly indicated in the list of ingredients. The EP plenary vote on the draft legislation is scheduled for July 2010.

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