ACC files lawsuit to block BPA listing
The lawsuit, filed in Sacramento County Superior Court, claims the action is “unjustified” based on administrative staff overturning a decision by the state’s scientific experts.
The California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) had already extended the comment period for the proposal to 27 March from 25 February.
It said requests had been received from the Grocery Manufacturers Association, the California Chamber of Commerce, the California League of Food Processors, and the California Manufacturers and Technology Association.
The plan is to adopt a Maximum Allowable Dose Level (MADL) of 290 micrograms per day of exposure.
BPA criteria
ACC said based on OEHHA’s own detailed evaluation, the Developmental and Reproductive Toxicant Identification Committee (DART-IC), “unanimously concluded” in July 2009 that BPA does not satisfy the listing criteria for developmental toxicants under Proposition 65.
The committee extensively reviewed a 2008 report on BPA from the US National Toxicology Program (NTP), which is the sole document now cited by OEHHA to justify its decision to list BPA, said the ACC.
“The state is ignoring its own panel of scientific experts, which completely undermines the scientific review process that citizens and businesses have relied upon for many years,” said Steven G. Hentges, Ph.D. of the American Chemistry Council’s (ACC) Polycarbonate/BPA Global Group.
“Respected California scientists, appointed by the Governor, thoroughly reviewed the very report cited now by OEHHA, and unanimously concluded that it did not justify listing BPA. Because the regulatory and scientific process has been derailed, we are taking legal action.”
OEHHA plan
OEHHA published a Notice of Intent to list BPA as a developmental toxicant under the Proposition 65 authoritative bodies listing mechanism on 25 January.
The proposition intends to protect citizens and drinking water sources from chemicals known to cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm and inform people about chemical exposure.
“The consensus of major government agencies around the world, including the US Food and Drug Administration, European Food Safety Authority, Japanese National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology and the World Health Organization supports the safety of BPA in food contact materials and other consumer products,” concluded the ACC.
If BPA is listed businesses that manufacture, distribute or sell products containing the chemical in the state would have to provide a warning if their product or activity exposes the public or employees to the chemical.
