Automakers, aircraft manufacturers, chemical companies and other manufacturers have told the EPA that widely used chemicals — nonylphenols and nonylphenol ethoxylates — can’t be included in a proposed significant new use rule, Bloomberg reports.
“Many of the NP and NPE Chemical Abstracts Service numbers listed in the proposed SNUR are in fact in commerce and have been for decades,” the Alkylphenols & Ethoxylates Research Council told the agency in comments on the proposal.
“It is well-established that the agency may not issue a SNUR for an ongoing use of a chemical substance,” the American Cleaning Institute said in its comments.
The rule would apply to 15 nonylphenols and nonylphenol ethoxylates. It would designate any use of 13 of the chemicals to be a “significant new use,” triggering EPA oversight. The other two chemicals, if used for something other than an intermediate or an epoxy cure catalyst, would also require EPA regulation.
Boeing — along with other companies and trade associations that submitted comments on the proposed rule — said the agency failed to account for ongoing uses of the chemicals.
In joint comments, the Association of Global Automakers and Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers told the EPA their members use the same five chemicals cited by Boeing and six other chemicals for hardening, coloring, cleaning and dispersing other chemicals, and other purposes.
“These applications need to be recognized as exempt from any SNUR requirements,” the auto groups said in comments. Companies represented by the two organizations include Aston Martin, BMW, Ferrari, Ford, General Motors, Toyota and Volvo.
