EPA is proposing to add 12 chemicals to the list of toxic chemicals which are subject to the reporting requirements under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA), section 313. Under EPCRA section 313(e)(1), any person may petition EPA to add chemicals to or delete chemicals from the list. EPA issued a statement of policy in the Federal Register of February 4, 1987 (52 FR 3479) (FRL-3101-6) providing guidance regarding the recommended content of and format for petitions. Additionally, EPA believes one chemical should be classified as a persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) chemical. The Toxics Use Reduction Institute filed a petition for EPA to consider 25 chemicals for inclusion the toxic chemicals list. EPA reduced the list to 12 because the other chemicals did not meet the statutory criteria listed below.
The chemicals substance identities and CASRNs are:
- 1-Bromopropane; 106-94-5
- Dibutyltin dichloride; 683-18-1
- 1,3-Dichloro-2-propanol; 96-23-1
- Formamide; 75-12-7
- 1,2,5,6,9,10-Hexabromocyclododecane; 3194-55-6
- 1,3,4,6,7,8-Hexahydro-4,6,6,7,8,8-hexamethylcyclopenta[g]-2-benzopyran (HHCB); 1222-05-5 (PBT chemical identified by EPA)
- N-Hydroxyethylethylenediamine; 111-41-1
- Methylhexahydrophthalic anhydride; 25550-51-0
- Nitrilotriacetic acid trisodium salt; 5064-31-3
- Nonylphenol; 25154-52-3
- p-(1,1,3,3-Tetramethylbutyl)phenol; 140-66-9
- 1,2,3-Trichlorobenzene; 87-61-6
- Triglycidyl isocyanurate; 2451-62-9
- Tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate; 115-96-8
- Tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate; 13674-87-8
- Tris(dimethylphenol) phosphate; 25155-23-1
EPCRA section 313 allows for the addition of chemicals if they meet one of three different requirements: acute human health effects criterion, chronic human health effects criterion, and environmental effects criterion. Substances can be added to the section 313 list if:
- The chemical can reasonably be anticipated to cause significant health issues in humans, existing beyond the facility site, as a result of continued releases.
- The chemical can reasonable be anticipated to cause cancer, reproductive issues, neurological disorders, heritable genetic mutations, or other chronic health effects in humans.
- The chemical can reasonably be anticipated to cause a significant adverse effect on the environment to due to its toxicity that it warrants reporting under this section in the judgment of the Administrator.
EPA believes these 12 chemicals in moderately low to low doses/concentrations each meet at least one of the criteria. EPA is proposing a 100-pound reporting threshold for HHCB because it has been shown to be bioaccumulative in aquatic species with bioconcentration factor values greater than 1,000. The threshold for reporting non-PBT, toxic chemicals is 10,000 pounds of the chemical used at a facility per year.