SDA faces new challenges in 2009

Bubbling rules

06 January 2009 00:00  [Source: ICB]

The Soap and Detergent Association prepares for more regulatory dissection in 2009

THE US might be in recession but people still need to clean - which is why the Soap and Detergent Association (SDA) is gearing up for another year of addressing regulatory and consumer concerns on the safety and benefits of cleaning products and their ingredients.

A major victory for the SDA in 2008 was the elimination of a federal $1/gallon tax credit for coprocessed renewable diesel, which was reportedly diverting animal fats such as tallow away from the oleochemical and soap industries. Tallow is a major feedstock for these industries as well as biofuel.

"Against all odds we were able to get that tax credit dropped by Congress," said SDA president Ernie Rosenberg in an interview with ICIS. "There are still some tax credits out there that distort the tallow market against oleochemicals but this one, now rescinded by the Congress was the most immediate threat. We will be looking at the others again in 2009."

On the chemicals front, the SDA says it has been working heavily with the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the development of their chemical assessment and management program (ChAMP). SDA says the program is a more workable approach to chemical management than the European Union's currently enforced Reach (registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemicals).

Under the ChAMP approach, the EPA plans to do preliminary assessments of high- and medium- production volume chemicals (those produced in quantities of more than 25,000 lbs/year) by 2012. A high priority classification, although preliminary, would be expected to cause the chemicals to be more scrutinized by toxicologists and some product stewards, says SDA.

"ChAMP is a really good example of a prioritized risk-based approach to deciding which chemicals should be of concern, and what should we do first about it," says Rosenberg. "It is much more efficient than Reach. In a voluntary program such as ChAMP, industry's response tends to focus on science while a regulatory approach tends to drive companies to call their lawyers."

Another example of SDA's successful science-based approach, says Rosenberg, was last year's negotiations with California's Air Resources Board which will continue to allow reasonable VOC (volatile organic compound) levels, preserving the use of fragrances in fabric softeners. In California, fragrances are classified as VOCs, which are regulated because they contribute to smog.

CLEANING CALIFORNIA BLUES

California continues to be the epicenter of the SDA's regulatory activities. The recently passed AB 1879 bill will begin to be implemented next year. While another legislation, the SB 509 which now morphed into the ingredient disclosure bill, did not pass, it is expected to come up again in the legislature.

Both were introduced last year under the state's Green Chemistry Initiative program.

AB 1879 authorizes California's Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) to develop regulations that create a process for identifying and prioritizing chemicals of concern as well as to create methods for analyzing alternatives to existing hazardous chemicals.

SB 509 requires DTSC to create an online database called Toxics Information Clearinghouse to inform consumers about the toxicity and hazards of chemicals used in products sold in California.

"We were reasonably happy about the result in 2008 on the AB 1879 green chemistry legislation but we expect more onerous bills to be introduced in 2009," said Rosenberg. "The ingredient disclosure bill failed to pass but we know that it will be back, which is one reason for the voluntary ingredient communication program that we launched in November."

The program called Consumer Product Ingredient Communication Initiative was developed by the SDA, the Consumer Specialty Products Association (CSPA) and the Canadian Consumer Specialty Products Association (CCSPA) to inform consumers about the ingredients in four major product categories: air care automotive care cleaning and polishes and floor maintenance.

Ingredients disclosed in these products will be listed in the same way as US food, drugs and cosmetic ingredients but labeling is only one option for giving the public this information, says Rosenberg. The program is expected to begin by January 2010.

"There are still implementation issues that we are working on with our members but the basics of the plan are on the SDA website," he says. "At least now we have something to put on the table when the bill comes up again in the California legislature."

The SDA also launched in November a new public science website called sdascience.org as a repository of the industry's large body of research and data related to cleaning products and their ingredients.

In the international chemicals landscape, the SDA says it is following its European association's lead on implementation of Reach, although it is "ready to lend its support if necessary."

The group says it has also done a lot of work with its international partners on initiatives such as the High Production Volume (HPV) chemicals program, and the European Health and Environmental Risk Assessment (HERA) program.

GREENWASH NO MORE

For years, the cleaning industry has been at the forefront of the green trend, but the SDA says it is concerned about the lack of scientific basis on some of the green standards, certifications and other systems being implemented across the board.

One example is the EPA's Environmentally Preferable Purchasing (EPP) programs that are popping up in one form or another across the US. Some EPP programs order state and local governments to purchase green products and services to stimulate market demand. The SDA says it is working to get the EPA's Design for the Environment (DfE) to evolve so that it becomes the leading EPP program.

The SDA is currently urging the state of New York not to rely solely on the cleaning product standards of Green Seal, a non-profit, third-party certification company, for their green purchasing. Green Seal released in September its revised Environmental Standard for Industrial and Institutional Cleaners (GS-37), which the SDA says is fundamentally flawed.

"We are dismayed about Green Seal's disregard of the very substantive comments and concerns that we raised about GS-37. We basically got no response from them as they went ahead with it," says Rosenberg.

Another area the SDA is working on is the "Green Guides" that the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is revising. Rosenberg says they will be working with the FTC to make sure that genuine green cleaning products can promote their legitimate benefits while rules will be strictly enforced against green claims that are misleading.

PROMOTING THE BENEFITS OF HYGIENE

The Soap and Detergent Association (SDA) will host its annual meeting in Boca Raton, Florida, US, from January 27-31, 2008, celebrating its 83rd year. This year's theme: Protecting Future Generations will highlight the increasing focus on children and the long-term beneficial impact of products that promote cleaning and hygiene.

"As an association, we are very fortunate that we represent companies who make products that enhance the quality of life and health," says SDA president Ernie Rosenberg. "This theme helps us drive home that our products, as well as the product stewardship and sustainability activities that this industry has been very good at pursuing, protect future generations."

Visit Doris de Guzman's Green Chemicals blog

By: Doris de Guzman
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