REGULATORY NEWS FOR WEEK OF NOVEMBER 16, 2021

• Section 71 Notice with respect to Bisphenol A, its structural analogues and functional alternatives

This MANDATORY notice applies to 188 substances, including bisphenol A (BPA) and BPA structural analogues or functional alternatives that were identified for further consideration in a problem formulation process in the context of prioritization. The scope of the notice will allow the Government of Canada to capture critical information on commercial status, industrial processes (e.g. facility releases), and downstream use of BPA and BPA structural analogues and functional alternatives in Canada to inform further prioritization decisions or other risk assessment activities by Environment and Climate Change Canada and Health Canada as well as risk management, if needed. Data must be submitted no later than March 16, 2022.

• British Columbia to hold public hearing on proposed health and safety regulations

WorkSafeBC is holding a virtual public hearing on December 8, 2021, for proposed amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation.

• Saskatchewan postpones some truck winter weight restrictions

Milder weather this fall will result in the postponement of the Winter Weight season in Saskatchewan. Typically, winter weights begin on all relevant secondary highways on November 16 each year and continue through mid-March.

• Ontario pauses reopening plan

The Ontario government has pressed pause on their Plan to Safely Reopen Ontario and Manage COVID-19 for the Long-Term, delaying the lifting of capacity limits and physical distancing requirements in the remaining higher-risk settings where proof of vaccination is required.

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• Final Significant New Use Rules published for 5 substances

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is issuing significant new use rules (SNURs) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for chemical substances which were the subject of premanufacture notices (PMNs). EPA is finalizing SNURs under TSCA section 5(a)(2) for chemical  substances which were the subject of:

P-18-289 – 2-[2-(methylcarboxymonocyclic)amino)ethoxy]alcohol (generic).

P-18-330 – Formaldehyde, polymer with alkyl aryl ketone (generic).

P-18-334 – Propanedioic acid, 1,3-dihexyl ester CAS No. 1431-37-4.

P-18-335 – Propanedioic acid,  1,3-dicyclohexyl ester CAS No. 1152-57-4.

P-18-337 – Propanedioic acid, 2,2-bis(hydroxymethyl)-, 1,3-dicyclohexyl ester CAS No. 2222732-46-7.

• OTC Monograph reform: Deemed Final Orders webinar December 15, 2021

An overview of Over-the-Counter (OTC) Monograph Reform and will highlight Deemed Final Orders (DFOs). The webinar will be held on December 15, 2021 at 1:00 pm ET.

• OTC Monograph Reform: OTC Sunscreen Drugs webinar December 15, 2021

FDA posted the deemed final order (DFO) for sunscreens which sets the current requirements for marketing OTC sunscreen products. FDA also posted the proposed order for sunscreens to amend and revise this deemed final order for OTC sunscreens products. A webinar will be held ib December 15, 2021 at 3:00 pm ET.

• FDA releases food safety and nutrition survey results

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has released FSANS Explorer, a web-based tool that allows users to interact with the Food Safety and Nutrition Survey data at any time to find answers to their specific questions.

• Europe holding webinar November 16^th on completeness of chemical safety reports

The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) started to manually check the completeness of chemical safety reports on 1 March 2021. Join this webinar to get targeted advice on the most common reasons for incompleteness and receive useful tips on how to avoid failing the check. Join the live Q&A from 11:00 to 13:00 EET.

• IARC Monographs evaluation of carcinogenicity of 5 substances

The results of the recent IARC Monographs evaluation of the carcinogenicity of 1,1,1-trichloroethane, 1,2-diphenylhydrazine, diphenylamine, N-methylolacrylamide, and isophorone have now been published in The Lancet Oncology. This summary article presents the conclusions of IARC Monographs Meeting 130. Three of these agents (1,2-diphenylhydrazine, diphenylamine, and isophorone) were evaluated by the Working Group for the first time.

Safety Share

• Agencies advised on reducing animal testing, embracing alternatives

At its meeting Sept. 28-29, the Scientific Advisory Committee on Alternative Toxicological Methods (SACATM) advised federal agencies on alternatives to animal use for ecotoxicity testing and approaches to establish confidence in new chemical safety testing methods. Ecotoxicity testing determines hazard or risk presented by substances that may enter the environment. The SACATM meeting highlighted the growing acceptance of computational tools to predict toxicity. Two tools described at the meeting were developed by U.S. government offices.

• Bullying Awareness Week

Bullying Awareness Week (November 15 to 19, 2021) is the third week in November. Bullying is a relationship problem that involves a power imbalance, which is why it can be so challenging to overcome it by ourselves. Regardless of where bullying happens – in school, the office, at home or in the community – there are people and resources that can help. This year’s theme, #WhereToTurn, encourages everyone to learn where to turn when dealing with bullying.

• Reminder: November is Fall Prevention Month

November is Fall Prevention Month. Slips, trips and falls are a major cause of workplace injuries.