Witness 5 -
President
National Petrochemical and Refiners Association
"We consider the current federal chemicals regulatory framework to be a solid foundation for protecting the health of consumers, our customers and the
environment, while simultaneously allowing for the development of products to enhance health, safety and environmental quality." Not a good sign.
Charlie wants a "draft bill" not a real bill to be released. If Lautenberg puts out a bill for markup, then everyone will retreat to their political lines. Won't this happen eventually no matter what? A real bill has to be released eventually.
He thinks chemistry will always involve risk. I strongly disagree...maybe he should learn about green chemistry. He uses a pretty awesome car metaphor here: Cars are inherently dangerous but we drive anyway and rely on modern transportation. He seems to leave out the giant regulatory apparatus that makes cars and roads safe...oops.
"REACH unproven and costly". "France is spending 600,000 Euros to help small business deal with it." I know France is smaller than the U.S. but that seems like a pretty inexpensive deal. For me, he just made the opposite point from what he was trying to make.
This guy fires me up.
Witness 6 -
Vice President, Workplace Safety and Environmental Stewardship Officer
Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc.
Kathy seems excited to be here. I like that.
"We’ve taken a cautious approach to materials, meaning that where there is credible evidence that a material we’re using may result in environmental or public health harm, we strive to replace it with safer alternatives." Kaiser is a chemical consumer not a producer and they are involved in health so this should be a different and interesting take.
"To address the lack of chemical safety information, our procurement and supply staff developed a supplier disclosure process that is used for major medical product purchases across our entire system. The disclosure is unique because we require information on a product-specific basis." Kaiser is big enough to make this happen without a reg. framework. So is Wal-Mart which is doing something similar for consumer products.
"Another challenge we face is that many products are labeled “green “or “environmentally friendly” for reasons that include reduced energy use, recycled content or reduced waste production. Some of these so-called “green” products are made from materials that are toxic or made from chemicals without adequate or any safety testing. A truly “green” product is one that is environmentally and biologically benign throughout its life cycle." I like her.
"Mechanisms are needed to support downstream users in procuring the safest products and materials for our needs." This is as close as she gets to addressing TSCA. She will get some follow up on what Kaiser actually wants.
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