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Senator Edward J. Markey (D-MA) and Representatives Lois Capps (D-CA) and Grace Meng (D-NY) have introduced the Ban Poisonous Additives (BPA) Act to bar the use of bisphenol A (BPA) in food and beverage containers nationwide in both reusable containers and food and beverage packaging. The bill has the support of 20 national labor unions and nearly three dozen health and environmental groups. More than a dozen states now have BPA restrictions in place and the FDA has discontinued its approval of… …

Your soap may be toxic when flushed down the drain:  New GreenScreen® for Safer Chemicals Tool Identifies Hazardous Chemicals in Common Household Products  (Toronto, Canada) The Canadian Environmental Law Association (CELA) and Clean Production Action (CPA) today released a comprehensive assessment of the hazards posed by two chemicals commonly used as antibacterial agents in consumer products ranging from liquid soaps and toothpaste to kitchen cutting boards. GreenScreen®… …

A new report from the Food Packaging Forum identifies 175 potentially hazardous substances used legally in food contact materials. According to the report, many of these substances  – chemicals used in food packaging or to produce those materials – are classified as carcinogenic, mutagenic or reprotoxic. Others are endocrine disrupters, and some are persistent and bioaccumulative. Most of these materials are plastics, highlighting the need for measuring chemicals of concern in… …

Hair and nail care products are contributing to smog: The California Air Resources Board has fined 19 companies for selling consumer products that violate air quality standards for smog-producing volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The products include hair care products, nail polish remover, bathroom cleaners and air fresheners responsible for over 11 tons of excess VOC emissions. Companies paying the highest fines include Bumble and Bumble, Wal-Mart, Stoner (car care and other cleaning… …

Plastics in turn, are a leading end use for flame retardants. They’re found in penguins and in mothers, breast milk and children across the United States; in household dust, ordinary supermarket food and in virtually every geographic location scientists have searched worldwide. These are the flame retardants known as PBDEs that have been used in plastics and textiles since the 1970s. Found to be persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic, these compounds are released from the products in which… …

Plastics Scorecard and Valuing Plastic, two recent reports demonstrate how companies need to pay attention to the chemicals in plastics and the end of life impacts of plastics. For companies looking to reduce their environmental footprint, including their use of hazardous chemicals, plastics are a huge challenge. BizNGO’s Plastics Scorecard found nearly 250 million metric tons of high-concern chemicals used in plastics annually that pose risks to workers, consumers, communities and the… …

Eight verified GreenScreen assessments are now available as part of the release of the Plastics Scorecard v1.0. …

By switching the type of plastic used in its IV bags, Dignity Health care system kept 700,000 pounds of high-concern chemicals — the equivalent in weight of a Boeing 747 airplane — out of the environment, according to BizNGO's new analysis of plastics, The Plastics Scorecard v.1.0. Starting from fossil fuels, the steps in plastics manufacturing are littered with chemicals of high concern to human health and the environment. For companies looking to reduce their use of… …

Why companies need to do hazard assessments of alternatives … Testing for flame retardants in general consumer and children’s products by the state’s Department of Ecology found many “regrettable substitutions.”  Regulated flame retardants – PBDEs for example – are being replaced with unregulated and potentially toxic chemicals. Many tested products contain chlorinated Tris such as TDCPP (banned in pajamas in the 1970s) while others contained HBCD… …