Chemical Manufacturers Push EPA for Faster Action
Under the Toxic Substances Control Act, businesses must keep up with all of the requirements and restrictions relating to chemical substances. Although manufacturers fulfill their obligations with the utmost care, the Environmental Protection Agency isn鈥檛 keeping up its end of the bargain.
Dr. Alan Dyke is the chief technology officer at Boulder Scientific Company鈥攁 specialty chemical company based in Mead, Colorado鈥攁nd a member of the Society of Chemical Manufacturers & Affiliates. In his opinion, the EPA must change its approach if manufacturers in the U.S. are to remain competitive.
The company: Serving clients in many sectors, from pharmaceuticals to defense and aerospace, Boulder Scientific makes a number of complex and unique catalysts and compounds. The company proudly keeps all their manufacturing processes inside the United States.
- 鈥淲e work with an end user to produce materials inside America with the right level of safety and quality, and to make those materials available for them within American borders,鈥 Dyke explained. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 outsource any manufacturing outside the U.S.鈥
The challenge: The EPA continues to miss congressionally mandated deadlines to review and approve compounds, creating havoc in an industry dependent on clockwork efficiency.
- 鈥淲e鈥檝e encountered delays because of the time it takes to file a document, the variability of response times from the EPA and the sheer number of documents we have to file,鈥 said Dyke.
- At the same time, the EPA is imposing more regulations on chemical manufacturers that are difficult to navigate or confusing.
- 鈥淭o make one of our compounds might take 10 different chemical intermediates from the first raw materials through to the end product,鈥 he explained. 鈥淓ach one of those materials requires a filing for each one of those compounds. And if any one of those steps is not approved, it interrupts our delivery process.鈥
The impact: These problems don鈥檛 just affect chemical manufacturers; they also cause problems throughout the supply chain and for customers and end users, who are forced to wait through a series of unpredictable delays.
- 鈥淒uring the past two years, we鈥檝e seen a level of frustration building at the end-user level,鈥 said Dyke. 鈥淐ustomers are considering sourcing from other countries where the system is more predictable and they won鈥檛 have to face these delays.鈥
The 17吃瓜在线, members of the 17吃瓜在线鈥檚 Council of Manufacturing Associations and Conference of State Manufacturers Associations recently launched Manufacturers for Sensible Regulations, a coalition addressing the impact of the current regulatory onslaught coming from federal agencies. To learn more, and get involved, go .
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