On May 26, 2015, Sustainable Nanotechnologies (SUN) began a survey on risk management of nanotechnology. A key objective of SUN is to build the SUN Decision Support System to facilitate safe and sustainable nanomanufacturing and risk management. It will integrate tools for ecological and human health risk assessment, lifecycle assessment, economic assessment, and social impact
Environmental Issues
Proposed Bill Would Amend CEPA To Address Nanomaterials
By Lynn L. Bergeson on
On March 10, 2010, Member of Parliament Peter Julian (NDP) tabled legislation (Bill C-494) in the House of Commons that would amend the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA) to implement procedures for the investigation and assessment of nanomaterials. The bill includes provisions concerning adding nanomaterials to the Domestic Substances List (DSL), notification of…
EPA Clarifies Final CNT SNURs
By Lynn L. Bergeson on
On July 28, 2009, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) clarified its June 24, 2009, final Significant New Use Rules (SNUR) for multi- and single-walled carbon nanotubes (CNT). According to EPA, upon review of the final rule, stakeholders asked whether the SNURs applied to all types of CNTs. EPA responded:
This is…
PEN Announces Report on Contaminated Site Remediation
By Lynn L. Bergeson on
Posted in Environmental Issues
On July 8, 2009, the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies (PEN) announced the availability of an article entitled Nanotechnology and In situ Remediation: A review of the benefits and potential risks, which discusses the use of nanomaterials in the environmental cleanup process. According to the article, nanomaterials have the potential to…
EPA Announces Joint Research Partnership with UK Agencies Regarding the Behavior and Effects of Nanomaterials in the Environment
By Lynn L. Bergeson on
On December 29, 2008, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it is in the process of finalizing a major joint research effort with a number of United Kingdom (UK) agencies that is intended to develop and validate predictive tools and similar conceptual models that predict exposure, bioavailability, and effects of manufactured nanomaterials in…
EPA Announces Centers for the Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology
On September 18, 2008, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that, to ensure nanotechnology is developed in a responsible manner, the National Science Foundation (NSF) and EPA awarded $38 million to establish two Centers for the Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology (CEIN). EPA contributed $5 million to the overall award, which is the largest award for nanotechnology research in its history. The CEINs will conduct research on the possible environmental, health, and safety impacts of nanomaterials, using very different approaches than previous studies. Led by the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) and Duke University, the CEINs will study how nanomaterials interact with the environment and human health, and are intended to result in better risk assessment and mitigation strategies to be used in the commercial development of nanotechnology. Each CEIN will work as a network, connected to multiple research organizations, industry, and government agencies, and will emphasize interdisciplinary research and education.…
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Friends of the Earth Australia Calls for an Immediate Moratorium on the Use of Carbon Nanotubes
In its latest Background Paper, entitled Mounting Evidence That Carbon Nanotubes May Be the New Asbestos, Friends of the Earth Australia (FOEA) is calling “for an immediate moratorium on the commercial use of carbon nanotubes and the sale of products that incorporate nanotubes until research can demonstrate whether or not there is any safe level of exposure to them.” FOEA also is calling for new nanotechnology-specific regulation to protect human health and the environment, as well as for mandatory labeling of all nanoscale materials used in the workplace and in consumer products.…
Researchers Examine Nanomaterials in Food Chain
By Lynn L. Bergeson on
Posted in Environmental Issues
The August 2008 issue of Environmental Health Perspectives includes an article entitled “Nano-Food Chain Link Examined,” which reports on recent research by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regarding whether nanomaterials biomagnify in the food chain. NIST reports that certain nanomaterials may not accumulate in the food chain, but notes…
CRC Press Publishes Nanotechnology and the Environment
We are pleased to announce that CRC Press has published Nanotechnology and the Environment, which Lynn L. Bergeson co-authored. Nanotechnology and the Environment includes a general explanation of nanomaterials, their properties, and their uses; describes the processes used to manufacture nanoscale materials; furnishes information on the analysis of nanomaterials in the environment and their fate and transport, including the effects of wastewater treatment on nanomaterials; discusses possible risks to human health and the environment; and describes developing regulations to manage those risks.…
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OPP Posts Page on Nanotechology and Pesticides
By Lynn L. Bergeson on
On July 22, 2008, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) posted a web page entitled “Pesticide Issues in the Works: Nanotechnology, the Science of Small.” The web page states: “[The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)] and EPA’s implementing regulations provide an effective framework for regulating pesticide products that …