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September 11, 2008

EPA to Seek Public Comment on ICTA Petition on Nanoscale Silver Products

Lynn L. Bergeson

Recent press reports have indicated, and an attorney with the International Center for Technology Assessment (ICTA) has confirmed, that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) contacted ICTA last week and informed the organization that it (EPA) intends to seek public comment on the nanoscale silver petition filed by ICTA and 13 other consumer, health, and environmental groups on May 1, 2008. The petition demanded, inter alia, that EPA regulate as pesticides under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act consumer products containing nanoscale silver. The petitioners requested that EPA respond to the petition “within a reasonable time.”

According to the ICTA attorney, EPA is preparing a Federal Register notice that will invite public comments on the ICTA Petition. It is not yet known how long the comment period will be or when the notice will be published in the Federal Register. The EPA Office of Pesticide Programs’ recently posted webpage on nanotechnology does not make any mention of the impending notice.