What Does
Toxic Substance Control Act Mean?
The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) was promulgated in 1976. It empowers the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate the introduction of new industrial chemicals and to regulate the use and distribution of chemicals that may be associated with health and environmental risks. The manufacture and importation of chemicals is also governed by this legislation. The TSCA aims to ensure that all industrial chemicals are properly evaluated in terms of health and environmental risk and allows for control measures aimed at risk reduction.
Safeopedia Explains Toxic Substance Control Act
The TSCA provides the legislation framework that governs the activities of the EPA in assessing, evaluating and mitigating risks posed by industrial and agricultural chemicals. The EPA uses risk assessment data to decide the appropriate measures to be applied in ensuring that unreasonable risks are not incurred during the manufacture or use of chemicals. Chemicals may be banned or their use may be limited or restricted. For example, the use of chemicals like asbestos in construction materials, CFCs, lead an PCB’s are regulated in terms of section 6 of the act.
The TSCA substances inventory indicates which chemicals have been evaluated and to what level their use is controlled. If a new chemical is to be manufactured or imported, it must first be subjected to scrutiny by the EPA in order to determine what hazards it may pose and to what degree, if any, it’s use should be controlled.