By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Legal/Regulatory Issues,United StatesThe NanoBusiness Commercialization Association (NanoBCA) will hold its 16th annual conference on June 15, 2017, in Washington, D.C. Speakers will include Lynn L. Bergeson, Managing Director, Bergeson & Campbell, P.C., as well as: Jim Phillips, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), NanoMech Corporation; Doyle Edwards, Director, Government Programs, Brewer Science; Matthew Putman, Ph.D., CEO, Nanotronics… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Occupational Health and Safety Issues,United StatesOn April 27, 2017, Dr. Charles Geraci, Associate Director for Nanotechnology at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), received the Director’s Distinguished Career Scientist Award. Dr. Geraci provides overall strategic guidance to the nanotechnology research program at NIOSH and is recognized internationally for his leadership in the field. Dr. Geraci has more… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,United StatesOn June 13-14, 2017, a “Nanosensor Manufacturing Workshop: Finding Better Paths to Products” will be held at the National Science Foundation in Arlington, Virginia. The Workshop supports the goals of the National Nanotechnology Initiative’s (NNI) Nanotechnology Signature Initiative, “Nanotechnology for Sensors and Sensors for Nanotechnology.” According to NNI, the Workshop will identify key elements needed… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Occupational Health and Safety Issues,Research,United StatesOn April 12, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Board of Scientific Counselors (BSC) held its 68th meeting. The BSC’s primary activity is to provide advice on NIOSH’s occupational safety and health research and prevention programs. The BSC also advises on standards of scientific excellence, current needs in the field of… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Research,United StatesThe Congressional Research Service (CRS) prepared a March 14, 2017, report entitled Science and Technology Issues in the 115th Congress. The report outlines science and technology policy issues that may come before the 115th Congress. The report notes that, given the rapid pace of science and technology advancement and its importance in many diverse public… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Occupational Health and Safety Issues,United StatesOn March 15, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a Federal Register notice announcing the availability of a draft Current Intelligence Bulletin (CIB) entitled The NIOSH Occupational Exposure Banding Process: Guidance for the Evaluation of Chemical Hazards for public comment. Under occupational exposure banding, chemicals are assigned to specific categories… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Occupational Health and Safety Issues,United StatesOn March 14, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) extended the comment period on the proposed information collection entitled “Survey of Engineered Nanomaterial Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Practices.” The goal of the project is to assess the relevance and impact of NIOSH’s contribution to guidelines and risk mitigation practices for… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Occupational Health and Safety Issues,Research,United StatesOn February 27, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) announced the availability of a draft chapter to be published in the NIOSH Manual of Analytical Methods entitled “Analysis of Carbon Nanotubes and Nanofibers on Mixed Cellulose Ester Filters by Transmission Electron Microscopy” for public comment. The draft chapter provides standardized approaches for the… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Occupational Health and Safety Issues,United StatesThe National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a Federal Register notice on February 10, 2017, inviting comment on a proposed information collection plan, “Survey of Engineered Nanomaterial Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Practices.” The goal of the project is to assess the relevance and impact of NIOSH’s contribution to guidelines and risk… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Occupational Health and Safety Issues,United StatesOn February 1, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) posted a blog item entitled “The Art and Science of OELs for Nanomaterials.” According to the item, NIOSH searched for proposals for occupational exposure limits (OEL) for new nanomaterials as part of the development of a World Health Organization (WHO) guideline for… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Legal/Regulatory Issues,United StatesWe are pleased to announced that Lynn L. Bergeson, Charles M. Auer, and Carla N. Hutton published an article, “Practitioner Insights: A Review and Analysis of TSCA Reform Provisions Pertinent to Manufacturers and Processors of Nanoscale Materials,” in the January 26, 2017, issue of Bloomberg BNA’s Daily Environment Report. The article reviews and analyzes the… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Occupational Health and Safety Issues,United StatesJohn Howard, M.D., Director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), authored a January 10, 2017, NIOSH blog item entitled “Occupational Health Issues in the USA.” Howard shares a recent editorial he wrote in Occupational Medicine, “Occupational health issues in the USA,” that highlights some of the occupational safety and health issues… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Legal/Regulatory Issues,United StatesOn January 12, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is scheduled to publish in the Federal Register a Section 8(a) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) rule establishing reporting and recordkeeping requirements for certain chemical substances when they are manufactured or processed at the nanoscale. According to a pre-publication version of the final… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,United StatesThe National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) periodically holds webinars to share information with the general public and the nanotechnology research and development community. Upcoming webinars include the following: On January 18, 2017, the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) will hold a webinar on “Water Sustainability through Nanotechnology: Enabling Next-Generation Water Monitoring Systems.” In this webinar, panelists… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Legal/Regulatory Issues,United StatesThe American Innovation and Competitiveness Act (S. 3084) would amend the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act (15 U.S.C. § 7501 et seq.) to change the frequency of National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) reports. The strategic plan would be released every five instead of every three years, and the triennial review would be renamed the… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Occupational Health and Safety Issues,Research,United StatesThe Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released on December 20, 2016, a white paper entitled Sustainability in the Workplace: A New Approach for Advancing Worker Safety and Health. The paper highlights the importance of including worker safety and health in the growing movement toward sustainability and corporate responsibility. According to the paper, research on… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,United StatesOn November 30, 2016, the White House published a blog item, “President Obama’s Top Ten Actions to Accelerate American Entrepreneurship,” and posted a fact sheet on President Obama’s entrepreneurship accomplishments. The tenth action is “Unleashed entrepreneurship in the industries of the future, including clean energy, biotechnology, the commercial space industry, nanotechnology, drones, robotics, advanced manufacturing,… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,United StatesRegistration is now open for a December 7, 2016, National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) webinar, “Water Sustainability through Nanotechnology: Increasing Water Availability.” NNI states that water demand in the U.S. is projected to increase over the next several decades. In addition to increased demand, many U.S. aquifers are being depleted at unsustainable rates, which may lead… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Legal/Regulatory Issues,United StatesThe Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published a Federal Register notice on November 16, 2016, announcing the 2017 Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) Office of Pharmaceutical Quality (OPQ) Staff Experiential Learning Site Visit Program. According to the notice, “[a] critical part of the commitment by CDER to make safe and effective high-quality drugs… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Legal/Regulatory Issues,Research,United StatesOn November 1, 2016, the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) announced the release of the 2016 National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan. The 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 2003 requires National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) agencies to develop an updated Strategic Plan every three years. The 2016 Strategic Plan represents a consensus among the… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Occupational Health and Safety Issues,United StatesOn November 1, 2016, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a blog item entitled “Never fear! NEAT 2.0 is here! — How to perform nanomaterial exposure assessment in the workplace.” NIOSH notes that in 2009, it developed and was the first to recommend using the nanoparticle emission assessment technique (NEAT). According… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Legal/Regulatory Issues,Occupational Health and Safety Issues,United StatesOn October 27, 2016, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed significant new use rules (SNUR) for three chemical substances that were the subject of premanufacture notices (PMN), including functionalized carbon nanotubes (generic). According to the notice, the PMN states that the substance will be used as a thin film for electronic device applications. Based… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in Federal,Occupational Health and Safety Issues,United StatesOn September 27, 2016, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Board of Scientific Counselors (BSC) met, and its discussion included engineering controls and nanomaterials. Kevin H. Dunn, Sc.D., CIH, a NIOSH Division of Applied Research and Technology (DART) mechanical engineer and member of NIOSH’s Nanotechnology Research Center, provided an update to the… Continue Reading
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton on Posted in United StatesThe 2016 Sustainable Nanotechnology Organization (SNO) conference will be held November 10-12, 2016. The conference sessions will be organized around selected “systems,” and sessions will be populated with talks on applications, effects and implications, analytical methods, and lifecycle aspects of nanomaterials within each system. The aims are to identity where nanomaterials and nanotechnology can improve… Continue Reading
