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The National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) published on March 11, 2015, its supplement to the President’s 2016 budget submitted to Congress.  NNI states that the supplement serves as the NNI annual report.  According to the annual report, in 2014, federal agencies invested $1.57 billion in nanotechnology-related activities.  The President’s 2016 request calls for an investment of $1.50 billion, which the report states “affirm[s] the Administration’s continuing...

The Danish Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published on March 6, 2015, the following reports concerning nanomaterials:...

Environment Canada and Health Canada have released a February 2015 consultation document entitled Proposed Approach to Address Nanoscale Forms of Substances on the Domestic Substances List.  Environment Canada and Health Canada propose a stepwise approach to address nanoscale forms of substances on the Domestic Substances List (DSL): The proposed criteria for defining existing nanomaterials include, but are not limited to: Proposed criteria for substances to be excluded, unless they...

On January 30, 2015, the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH®) announced the under study list for its Threshold Limit Values for Chemical Substances (TLV®-CS) Committee.  The under study list includes, under other issues under study, “nanoscale primary particle notation.”  According to ACGIH®, the under study list serves as “notification and invitation to interested parties to submit substantive data and comments to assist the...

On February 16, 2015, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published the 2014 annual report of the EFSA Scientific Network of Risk Assessment of Nanotechnologies in Food and Feed, which is intended to inform the public and the EFSA Advisory Forum about the Network’s specific activities and achievements.  EFSA states that, during 2014, the Network followed-up on its priority areas and contributed to making inventories of applications of nanomaterials already present in the food/feed...

The Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC) fiscal year (FY) 2016 budget request includes funding to establish a Center for Consumer Product Applications and Safety Implications of Nanotechnology (CPASION), which is intended “to develop robust methods in identifying and characterizing nanomaterials in consumer products; to understand their effects on human exposure; and to develop scientists to advance nanomaterials in consumer product safety research.”  CPSC recommends a $5 million...

On February 2, 2015, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) promulgated through a direct final rule significant new use rules (SNURs) for 27 chemical substances that were the subject of premanufacture notices (PMNs).  The substances include polymer of terephthalic acid and ethyl benzene with multi-walled carbon nanotube (generic) (PMN Number P-13-573), which is subject to a Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Section 5(e) consent order.  The consent order requires the following...

On January 28, 2015, Environment Canada announced that, with Health Canada, it has initiated a review of significant new activity (SNAc) orders and notices currently in place under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA).  According to Environment Canada, since publication of the first SNAc in 2001, policies and practices have evolved, particularly with respect to the nature and scope of SNAcs, as well as the wording used to identify “significant new activities.”  The SNAc...

The European Environmental Bureau (EEB) posted on January 13, 2015, a paper entitled “NGO comments on Transparency measures for nanomaterials on the market:  Working conclusions.”  EEB, the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), Friends of the Earth (FOE) Australia, and Friends of the Earth Germany (BUND) state that they disagree with most of the EC’s working conclusions regarding the transparency measures for nanomaterials on the market.  The NGOs claim that the...

The Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) announced on December 17, 2014, that the Federal Council decided to continue the action plan for synthetic nanomaterials until 2019.  The objectives of the action plan include: FOPH states that the creation of regulatory framework conditions is divided into two phases.  Phase 1 (short- and medium-term) calls for strengthening corporate responsibility through different tools (precautionary matrix, guide to self-regulation, support of...