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U.S. EPA TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETING, SEEK COMMENT ON PROPOSALS TO CONTROL PERSISTENT BIOCUMULATIVE TOXIC CHEMICALS

Release Date: 2/25/1999
Contact Information: Dave Schmidt, U.S. EPA, (415)744-1578

     SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will hold a public meeting March 5 at its San Francisco office on 75 Hawthorne Street to seek comment on two major initiatives to address persistent bioaccumulative toxic (PBT) chemicals in the environment.

     The first initiative the agency is seeking comment on is the EPA PBT Strategy. Specifically, the agency is seeking comment on two documents: "A Multimedia Strategy for Priority Persistent Bioaccumulated and Toxic Pollutants" and "EPA Action Plan for Mercury."  The public comment period for the agency's PBT strategy will run from 9 a.m. to 12 noon

     The second initiative the agency is seeking comment on is the PBT Toxics Release Inventory rule. This proposed rule will add certain PBT chemicals to the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) and lower the reporting thresholds for these chemicals.  The TRI is a public database of toxic releases to the air, water and land from certain industries.  This proposed rule will lead to greater reporting of environmental releases of a number of PBT chemicals, including dioxin and mercury and will further expand the public's right to know. The public comment period for the TRI rule will run from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
     
     There will be an opportunity to comment on either/or both initiatives from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
     
     PBT chemicals are highly toxic, can remain in the environment for generations and can travel long distances through the air to reach land and water.  PBT chemicals are known to cause a variety of health effects at low doses, including reproductive disorders and cancer.
     
     For information on the EPA PBT Strategy, contact Sam Sasnett at 202-260-8020, or visit the following Website: https://www.epa.gov/pbt/pbtstrat

     For information on the proposed PBT TRI rule, contact Daniel R. Bushman at 202-260-3882, or visit https://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/EPA-TRI/1999/January/Day-26/tri1749.htm