"According to a new report released yesterday, efforts to protect children's health have been fatally blocked by American industry's refusal to submit information on the commercial use of chemicals.

In a scathing critique of a voluntary reporting strategy launched with great fanfare under the Clinton administration — and quietly killed in recent years — the EPA's Inspector General wrote that the Voluntary Children's Chemical Evaluation Program was a bust.

According to the Inspector General, the much-hyped program was 'hampered by industry partners who chose not to voluntarily collect and submit information, and EPA's decision not to exercise its regulatory authorities under the Toxic Substances Control Act to compel data collection. EPA has not demonstrated that it can achieve children's health goals with a voluntary program.'"

Sheila Kaplan reports for The Investigative Fund July 23, 2011. [2]