US May Get New Toxics Law, Intl Convergence Possible-EPA Head

[SpartanDem]

Source: WSJ

PARIS (Dow Jones)--The U.S. may get a new law on toxic chemicals, and there could be a case for making the country's rules more compatible with those of other major economies, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator said Friday.

"I think that there is some likelihood that there will be a new law," Lisa Jackson told reporters at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Jackson said there's "lots of discussion" about how U.S. rules on toxic products potentially could change, both among lawmakers and chemicals manufacturers.

The latter are discussing the matter "partly because of the pressure they are under - they make products for the world, not just for Americans," Jackson said.

"There's nothing wrong with taking advantage of the opportunity presented by that," Jackson added.

The European Union's tough new rules, called REACH, require safety testing for most chemicals used on the E.U. market. The current U.S. law, passed in 1976, didn't require testing of many substances that were already on the market


Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20090529-709637.html