By Porter Wright on Denmark’s Environmental Protection Agency (DEPA) recently released "Survey on basic knowledge about exposure and potential environmental and health risks for selected nanoparticles". The survey was written by Sonja Hagen Mikkelsen, Erik Hansen and Trine Boe Christensen of COWI A/S, Anders Baun and Steffen Foss Hansen of DTU Environment and Mona-Lise Binderup of DTU Food, all working under contract with … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on On June 17, 2011, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a notice in the Federal Register announcing that it was seeking "comment on several possible appraoches for obtaining information about what nanoscale materials are present in registered pesticide products. . . . and its potential effects on humans or the environment. . . ." Under … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on The EPA recently released a draft of its "Nanomaterial Case Study: Nanoscale Silver in Disinfectant Spray" which you can download here. The document is 323 pages long and has 6 chapters: (i) Introduction; (ii) Introduction to Silver and Nanoscale Silver; (iii) Life-Cycle Stages; (iv) Fate and Transport in Environmental Media; (v) Exposure, Uptake, and Dose; … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on The Members of the European Union’s (“EU”) Environment Committee (“MEPs”) recently voted in favor of proposed amendments to the EU’s Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive, first passed in 2002, banning the use of nanosilver and long multi-walled carbon nanotubes in electrical and electronic products. The legislators also approved language requiring that any electrical or electronic … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on Inside EPA reports today that a "senior policy adviser for EPA’s Office of Pesticide Programs, said EPA would issue in June a long-awaited response to a 2008 activist petition asking the agency to regulate nanoscale silver under FIFRA." The article also mentions that EPA intends to define nanoscale ingredients for FIFRA purposes as "an ingredient … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on Earlier today, an IEEE blogger commented on a nanosilver article we previously re-published on this cite. The original article was written by the Silver Nanotechnology Working Group and was first published on the University of Massachusetts, Amherst’s InterNano website (where I am Contibuting Editor for Environmental, Health and Safety and Regulation). Dexter Johnson comments on the Nanoclast … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on This article was contributed by Dr. Rosalinda Volpe, Executive Director, Silver Nanotechnology Working Group (SNWG) and originally appeared on the National Nanomanufacturing Network’s InterNano website earlier today. It is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported. On November 3 – 6, 2009 the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) held a Scientific Advisory Panel (SAP) meeting … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on We have previously reported on a study by Arizona State researchers looking into the potential release of nanosilver particles from odor-killing socks during theoretical wash cycles. A new study from Switzerland examines the issue in further detail. L. Geranio, et al., "The Behavior of Silver Nanotextiles during Washing," Environ. Sci. Technol. (Sept. 2009). Three authors from the … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on Earlier today, the Federal Register carried a notice regarding the 4 day consultation meeting of the FIFRA Scientific Advisory Panel concerning the assessment of hazard and exposure associated with nanosilver and other nanometals in pesticides, previously announced in the FR for September 16, 2009 and discussed previously here. Today’s announcement notes a change in the time for … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on A much valued contributor from CyberRegs provided us with the following information from the Federal Register that may be of interest to readers: There will be a 4-day consultation meeting of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act Scientific Advisory Panel (FIFRA SAP) to consider and review a set of scientific issues related to the assessment … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on Here is the Summer 2009 edition of Nanotechnology Law Report. The newsletter contains the below-listed articles (and more): EPA Issues Significant New Use Rules for Carbon Nanotubes Are Nanoparticles Released by Cutting or Compounding Nano-Composites? Annual Nano TiO2 Production Estimated at 44,000 Metric Tons Are Nano Consumer Products Headed Underground? Oversight of Next Generation Nanotechnology … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on Friends of the Earth (FOE) released the above entitled report, written by Dr. Rye Senten and Ian Illuminato, in June of this year. As with their earlier report on nanotechnology and farming (discussed here ), Nano & Biocidal Silver comes to three conclusions: 1 Nanotechnology and its products, in this case, nanosilver, will destroy the … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on Inside U.S. Trade reports three interesting nano-regulatory developments: (i) the "EPA has signaled that it may soon decide to regulate nano-silver as a pesticide under " FIFRA; (ii) the "EPA may rule favorably on some points" raised in the 2008 citizen’s petition filed by 14 advocacy groups seeking more restrictive regulation of nanoscale silver; and … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on For decades after it was discovered, penicillin was used to combat bacteria and, eventually, almost every other disease, whether it was the appropriate treatment or not. Over time and over use of penicillin and its successor drugs, resistant strains of bacteria began to appear, to the point where, now, many strains of bacteria are almost … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on Earlier today, the EPA published an interim status report regarding its Nanoscale Materials Stewardship Program. A final report is expected in early 2010. Nanoscale Materials Stewardship Program, Interim Report, January 2009, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics. At the outset, EPA notes that "[t]he findings and conclusions [of the] report should not … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on With all of the interest in nanosilver generated by the recent EPA petition filed by the International Center for Technology Assessment, I thought I would post some background material on EHS issues surrounding silver. A couple of disclaimers: the material is not comprehensive, and you might see parts of it again in "Nanotechnology Law and Policy" … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on A recent study by two Arizona State University researchers found that socks made of fabric incorporating nanoscale silver may potentially release that silver into wash-water. T. Benn, et al., "Nanoparticle Silver Release into Water from Commercially Available Sock Fabrics," Environmental Science & Technology, Vol. 42, at 4133-4139 (2008). Why put silver in your socks? Because it … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on On March 5, 2008, the US EPA announced that it had fined the company IOGEAR for "for selling unregistered pesticides and making unproven claims about their effectiveness." The fine, reached via settlement, was for $208,000, and IOGEAR has since removed its pesticide claims from the offending products.… Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on An article by Barnaby Feder in this morning’s New York Times reminds us of a question that, even a year later, has not been completely resolved. Astute readers (and by "astute" I mean everyone who wasn’t under a rock) will remember the large discussion over the use of nanosilver as an anti-bacterial device, including the … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on A new product is hitting the market, the SILVER SEAL(TM) Antibacterial, Washable Keyboard and Mouse by Seal Shield Corporation. What is unique about these products is that in addition to the nano silver ions embedded directly into the plastic for anti-bacterial impacts, the products are completely dishwasher safe.… Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on In response to the Samsung Washing Machine "nanosilver" controversy last year, EPA indicated it would issue a federal notice concerning how it intends to treat silver ion generators under FIFRA. Many urged EPA to use this opportunity to issue a broad proclamation that all products containing nanoscale silver would be required to be registered as pesticides … Continue Reading
By Porter Wright on JCM: My reading is EPA’s new position on Samsung’s washing machine has little to do with the alleged "nanoness" of the silver ion particles released by the machine. Rather, EPA is focused on the claimed antimicrobial properties of the material. Whether or not the silver ions are truly "nano" is not determinative. Under EPA’s current … Continue Reading
