Greenlist Bulletin 12/11/2009
This is the weekly bulletin of the TURI Library at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Greenlist Bulletin provides previews of recent publications and websites relevant to reducing the use of toxic chemicals by industries, businesses, communities, individuals and government. You are welcome to send a message to jan@turi.org if you would like more information on any of the articles listed here.
Titles here, abstracts below:
- Best practices in product chemicals management in the retail industry
- Nanotech regulatory document archive
- Chemical BPA may harm developing fetus, Quebec study suggests
- 15 new substances of very high concern to be added to the Candidate List
- Corrosion in homes and connections to Chinese drywall
- Power and energy basics: calculating energy use & savings
1. Best practices in product chemicals management in the retail industry
Source: Green Chemistry and Commerce Council (GC3), December 8, 2009
Seven innovative retailers faced with increasing demands to understand more about the chemical ingredients and toxicity of the products they sell, have developed systems to manage chemical ingredients in these products, says a new report released today by the Green Chemistry and Commerce Council (GC3), a project of the Lowell Center for Sustainable Production at the University of Massachusetts Lowell.
The retailers studied in the report – Apple, Boots, Green Depot, Patagonia, REI, Staples, and Walmart – implement different types of product chemicals management systems to ensure safer products for consumers, each with their own benefits and challenges.
“Retailers are feeling pressure from regulators, consumers, environmental groups, and the media to manage chemical ingredients in products, and as a result, we’re seeing some retailers emerge as leaders in creating structured systems to guide them in selling safer products,” says Yve Torrie, project manager at the Lowell Center for Sustainable Production at UMass Lowell. “We analyzed their systems to determine what best practices or key success factors could benefit other retailers.”
From the seven company cases, the report “Best Practices in Product Chemicals Management in the Retail Industry,” identifies six best practices in implementing a product chemicals management system. They are:
1. Gaining Commitment from the Top: Secure a commitment from leaders in the organization that a product chemicals management system is important.
2. Collaborating with Direct Suppliers: Communicate expectations with suppliers and work with them while they conform to new requirements.
3. Engaging with a Wider Net of Stakeholders: Work collaboratively with suppliers, advocates, other retailers, and sector-wide and industry-wide groups in the development of a products chemicals management system.
4. Educating Consumers: Make it easy for consumers to purchase safer products by providing educational materials on the products sold.
5. Managing the System Well: Ensure the system starts with a baseline of information that allows for continuous improvement.
6. Selecting the Approach that’s Right for Your Operation: Evaluate different systems to determine which product chemicals management system is the best “fit” for your retail operation.
Although many retailers start with developing their own product chemicals management system, there are growing opportunities for collaboration sector-wide and industry-wide. The GC3 provides an opportunity for retailers to collaborate with companies throughout the supply chain.
2. Nanotech regulatory document archive
Source: Arizona State University
The Nanotech Regulatory Document Archive is a free, searchable database of governmental documents from around the world relating to nanotechnology regulation. Each entry in the database provides a direct link and/or attached copy of a specific government document, an abstract of that document prepared for the database, and a listing of other pertinent information including author, date, and document type.
The Nanotech Regulatory Document Archive is intended to be a living, open, collaborative resource. Users are invited to contribute information to the database to keep it as updated and comprehensive as possible. The database is a collaboration of the Center for the Study of Law Science & Technology in the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University, USA, the Centre of Regulatory Studies in the Monash University Law School, Australia, and the Institute of Environmental and Energy Law at K.U. Leuven, Belgium.
3. Chemical BPA may harm developing fetus, Quebec study suggests
Source: Canada.com, December 9, 2009
Author: Aaron Derfel
A common chemical used in the plastic lining of frozen-food dinners and many other products is endangering the development of fetuses in pregnant women, a new study suggests.
Researchers at the Universite de Sherbrooke have shown that Bisphenol A (BPA) — an industrial chemical used in many plastics — harms stem cells in the placenta that nourish the fetus. The study is the first to focus on the impact of BPA on cytotrophoblasts, cells that attach the fetus to the uterus.
Until now, most research has been carried out on the hormone-disrupting effects of BPA on infants who drink from hard-plastic baby bottles. But the Sherbrooke study raises concerns that BPA might be causing irrevocable damage even before birth.
"Very low concentrations (of BPA) that are a hundredth of what is found in the blood of pregnant women can affect . . . the development of the fetus," said a co-author of the study, Aziz Aris. "Research has shown that BPA is capable of easily crossing the placenta into the fetus."
The researchers collected five placentas from women who had just given birth. In the laboratory, they exposed the cells from those placentas to low concentrations of BPA for 24 hours. The BPA ended up killing some of the cells, raising the risk of harm to the fetus.
"Our results show that doses of BPA from 0.0002 to 0.2 micrograms per millilitre, which are close to levels of BPA found in circulation of pregnant women, are cytotoxic," the study concluded.
Aris, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology, said it's safe to assume that what occurred with their lab experiments calso can take place in vivo, or in a pregnant women's body. Aris suggested that BPA exposure during pregnancy is probably behind a growing number of miscarriages. In the placenta, cytotrophoblasts are necessary to provide nutrients and waste exchange between the mother and her fetus. Aris said BPA causes membrane damage to the placenta.
4. 15 new substances of very high concern to be added to the Candidate List
Source: European Chemicals Agency, December 7, 2009
ECHA´s Member State Committee identified today 15 new chemical substances for the Candidate List of substances of very high concern. The List will formally be updated in January 2010.
The Member State Committee agreed unanimously that 15 new substances of very high concern (SVHC) should be put on the Candidate List. Six of these substances were identified in a written procedure and eight at a Committee meeting in Helsinki 2-4
December. One substance, lead chromate, will be included in the Candidate List without involvement of the Member State Committee, because ECHA received no comments on its hazardous properties in the preceding public consultation.
5. Corrosion in homes and connections to Chinese drywall
Source: US Consumer Product Safety Commission, November 23, 2009
Results from a major indoor air study of 51 homes are being released today along with initial reports from two studies of corrosion in homes with Chinese drywall. We now can show a strong association between homes with the problem drywall and the levels of hydrogen sulfide in those homes and corrosion of metals in those homes.
By identifying this association, the Interagency Drywall Task Force can now move forward to develop protocols that will identify homes with this corrosive environment and can determine the effectiveness of remediation methods. The Task Force continues to work with Congressional and White House officials to determine the best approaches to design and fund these identification and remediation efforts to help the families dealing with this issue.
“We now have the science that enables the Task Force to move ahead to the next phase – to develop both a screening process and effective remediation methods. Ongoing studies will examine health and safety effects, but we are now ready to get to work fixing this problem,” said U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Chairman Inez Tenenbaum.
6. Power and energy basics: calculating energy use & savings
Source: ISTC, University of Illinois, November 2009
Author: Todd Rusk
Due to concerns over rising energy prices and the effects of global climate change, interest in energy efficiency is increasing. Even for those that rely on the technical expertise of others to improve energy efficiency, it can be helpful to understand some basic power and energy concepts. This document presents some examples that demonstrate simple electricity and natural gas calculations.
You are welcome to send a message to jan@turi.org if you would like more information on any of these resources. Also, please tell us what topics you are particularly interested in monitoring, and who else should see Greenlist. An online search of the TURI Library catalog can be done at http://library.turi.org for greater topic coverage.
This page updated Friday December 11 2009