"The EPA has failed to regulate or review two fragrance ingredients considered to be among the most hazardous chemicals in production—and among those Congress directed the agency to address faster than any others.
The Environmental Protection Agency’s lack of action over the past four years, since Congress overhauled the Toxic Substances Control Act, has drawn the ire of outside observers and even a senator who led that overhaul effort. Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) said the delay runs “afoul of the spirit and plain reading of the law.”
The 2016 TSCA amendments required the EPA to fast-track the process to regulate a set of high-hazard chemicals known as PBTs, because they persist in the environment, bioaccumulate—or build up in the food chain—and are toxic.
The fragrance ingredients were among those red-flagged. The more widely produced of the two—described by manufacturers as having a woody scent—is present in air fresheners, laundry detergent, fabric softeners, and personal care products, according to an EPA database."
Pat Rizzuto reports for Bloomberg Environment October 1, 2020.
