Washington Toxics Reduction Strategy

Washington Toxics Reduction Strategy Holly Davies, PhD Washington State Department of Ecology PPRC Roundtable October 24, 2012

Reducing Toxic Threats • Green Chemistry • Benign design • Kids & environment protected • Manufacturers share the responsibility • Safer Alternatives • Phase out PBTs PREVENTION Averting toxic exposures and avoiding future costs is the smartest, cheapest and healthiest approach. Identify & Gather Data on Chemicals of Concern MANAGEMENT Needed but costly strategies to prevent the release of toxics to the environment. CLEANUP Needed but costly solutions to avoidable contamination.

Identify & Gather Data on Chemicals of Concern (Part 1) • Children’s Safe Products Act (CSPA) • Reporting law • Build transparency through disclosure • Chemicals of high concern to children (CHCCs) • First reports Aug. 2012 • Second reports expected Feb. 2013 • Product testing for compliance • Long term • Use of COCs routinely disclosed • Market drives demand

Chemicals of High Concern for Children High Priority Chemicals Exposure Indicators • List of 66 CHCCs prioritized by children’s toxicity and exposure 2219 2044 476 Potential CHCCs

Identify & Gather Data on Chemicals of Concern (Part 2) • Puget Sound Toxics Loading Study • Multi-year, multi-agency study • 17 COCs • Sources • Loadings • Land uses (4) • Pathways (9)- stormwater • National Estuary Program funding • Puget Sound Partnership • Action Agenda

Puget Sound Priorities • Copper • Brake pads • Boat paint • Investigate urban pesticides • PAHs • Wood smoke, creosote treated wood, vehicles • Roofing • Investigate components and runoff • Metals, phthalates, etc. • Petroleum drips and leaks • Manage stormwater runoff

Persistent Bioaccumulative Toxic Chemicals (PBTs) • List of PBTs “worst of the worst” • Chemical Action Plans (CAPs) • Recommendations • Implement • Current authority • New authority • Partners

Selected CAP Recommendations • Mercury (2003) • Ban on some uses • Lamp recycling and product stewardship • PBDEs (2006) • Ban on some uses, after an alternatives assessment • Lead (2009) • Ban on wheel weights • Lead-based paint assessment and remediation • Toxic Metals focus for pollution prevention planning • PAH (expected 2012) • Wood smoke • Creosote treated wood • Vehicles

More PBTs • Monitoring • Baseline and trends • PCB CAP next • New multi-year schedule of CAPs • Update the PBT Rule • Long term goals • No new uses of PBTs • Management of existing PBTs

Alternatives Assessment • Multi-state guidance document • Modules to customize use • Hazard assessment • Green Screen • Quick Chemical Assessment Tool (QCAT) • Will pick five chemicals to test AA guidance • Assistance to businesses • Post AAs to IC2 database • Long term goals • Routine use by businesses • Assessment before use

Green Chemistry • Draft Roadmap • Creating awareness and capacity • Building the program • Sustaining the program • Green Chemistry Center funding • Education • Workshops for teachers • Curriculum • Target safer alternatives for COCs in Puget Sound and Columbia River • Long term goals • All chemistry is green

Future Chemical Policy • Move away from whack-a-mole • Specific chemical • Specific product(s) • Manufacturers to share responsibility • TSCA reform • Review before use BPA Phthalates Lead

Resources Holly Davies Senior Scientist (360) 407-7398 Holly.davies@ecy.wa.gov Carol Kraege Toxics Coordinator (360) 407-6906 Carol.kraege@ecy.wa.gov Reducing Toxic Threats http://www.ecy.wa.gov/toxics/index.htm Children’s Safe Products http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/swfa/cspa/ Puget Sound Toxics Loading Assessment http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/pstoxics/index.html Persistent Bioaccumulative Toxic chemicals http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/swfa/pbt/ Alternative Assessment http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/hwtr/ChemAlternatives/index.html Green Chemistry http://www.ecy.wa.gov/sustainability/greenchem.html

Washington Toxics Reduction Strategy