Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade - Notification - United States - Toxic substances : Carbon Tetrachloride

NOTIFICATION

The following notification is being circulated in accordance with Article 10.6

 

1.

Notifying Member: UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

If applicable, name of local government involved (Article 3.2 and 7.2):

2.

Agency responsible:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) [2055]

Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers, email and website addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above:

Please submit comments to: USA WTO TBT Enquiry Point, Email: usatbtep@nist.gov

3.

Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X], 2.10.1 [ ], 5.6.2 [ ], 5.7.1 [ ], 3.2 [ ], 7.2 [ ], other:

4.

Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading. ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable): Carbon Tetrachloride; Environmental protection (ICS code(s): 13.020); Production in the chemical industry (ICS code(s): 71.020); Products of the chemical industry (ICS code(s): 71.100)

5.

Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document: Carbon Tetrachloride (CTC); Regulation Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA); (49 page(s), in English)

6.

Description of content: Proposed rule - The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to address the unreasonable risk of injury to human health presented by carbon tetrachloride (CTC) under its conditions of use as documented in EPA's 2020 Risk Evaluation for Carbon Tetrachloride and 2022 Revised Unreasonable Risk Determination for Carbon Tetrachloride pursuant to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). CTC is a volatile, organic compound that is primarily used as a feedstock (i.e., processed as a reactant) in the making of products such as refrigerants, aerosol propellants, and foam-blowing agents. TSCA requires that EPA address by rule any unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment identified in a TSCA risk evaluation and apply requirements to the extent necessary so that the chemical no longer presents unreasonable risk. EPA determined that CTC presents an unreasonable risk of injury to health due to cancer from chronic inhalation and dermal exposures and liver toxicity from chronic inhalation, chronic dermal, and acute dermal exposures in the workplace. To address the identified unreasonable risk, EPA is proposing under TSCA to establish workplace safety requirements for most conditions of use, including the condition of use related to the making of low Global Warming Potential (GWP) hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs), prohibit the manufacture (including import), processing, distribution in commerce, and industrial/commercial use of CTC for conditions of use where information indicates use of CTC has already been phased out, and establish recordkeeping and downstream notification requirements. The use of CTC in low GWP HFOs is particularly important in the Agency's efforts to support the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020 (AIM Act) and the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, which was ratified on 26 October 2022.

7.

Objective and rationale, including the nature of urgent problems where applicable: Protection of human health or safety; Protection of the environment

8.

Relevant documents:

88 Federal Register (FR) 49180, 28 July 2023; Title 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 751:

https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2023-07-28/html/2023-15326.htm

https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2023-07-28/pdf/2023-15326.pdf

This proposed rule is identified by Docket Number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2020-0592. The Docket Folder is available from Regulations.gov at https://www.regulations.gov/docket/EPA-HQ-OPPT-2020-0592/document and provides access to primary and supporting documents as well as comments received. Documents are also accessible from Regulations.gov by searching the Docket Number. WTO Members and their stakeholders are asked to submit comments to the USA TBT Enquiry Point by or before 4pm Eastern Time on 11 September 2023. Comments received by the USA TBT Enquiry Point from WTO Members and their stakeholders will be shared with the regulator and will also be submitted to the Docket on Regulations.gov if received within the comment period.

9.

Proposed date of adoption: To be determined

Proposed date of entry into force: To be determined

10.

Final date for comments: 11 September 2023

11.

Texts available from: National enquiry point [ ] or address, telephone and fax numbers and email and website addresses, if available, of other body:

https://members.wto.org/crnattachments/2023/TBT/USA/23_11383_00_e.pdf