Agency lacks budget, authority and expertise to ensure nanoproducts are safe
WASHINGTON, Aug. 21 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --- The inability of the Consumer
Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to carry out its mandate with respect to
simple, low-tech products such as children's jewelry and toy trains bodes
poorly for its ability to oversee the safety of complex, high-tech products
made using nanotechnology, according to a new report released by the Project
on Emerging Nanotechnologies (PEN).
Two nanotech products under the jurisdiction of the CPSC are being used in the
Olympic Games in Beijing -- a pair of running shoes and a swimsuit. The
products can be found in PEN's consumer product inventory
(http://www.nanotechproject.org/inventories/consumer/), which now contains
more than 800 manufacturer-identified, nanotechnology-enabled items.
"The agency lacks the budget, the statutory authority and the scientific
expertise to ensure the hundreds of nanoproducts now on the market, among them
baby bottle nipples, infant teething rings, paints, waxes, kitchenware and
appliances, are safe. This problem will only worsen as more sophisticated
nanotechnology-based products begin to enter the consumer market," argues E.
Marla Felcher, who teaches at Harvard University'sKennedy School of Government
and is the author of the report, The Consumer Product Safety Commission and
Nanotechnology. The report is available at:
http://www.nanotechproject.org/n/CPSC/.
The CPSC is charged with protecting the public against unreasonable risks of
injury or death associated with consumer products. More than 15,000 consumer
goods fall under the CPSC's jurisdiction, including toys and baby products,
sports equipment, fitness equipment, home improvement and garden equipment,
clothing, appliances, electronics and computers. The consumer product
inventory maintained by PEN indicates that nanotechnology has already found
its way into every one of these product categories.
"During the fall of 2007, many Americans faced a hazard in their products that
had been banned for 30 years -- lead. As millions of children's toys coated
with lead paint were recalled, it became clear that government oversight had
failed, and that the CPSC, the agency primarily responsible for the oversight
of these toys, was stretched too thin from years of neglect, underfunding and
the challenges posed by an increasingly global manufacturing system," says PEN
Director David Rejeski. "It is against this background that we need to ask the
question: Is the CPSC adequately prepared to deal with nanotechnology, which
is now associated with more than 800 manufacturer-identified consumer products
ranging from infant pacifiers to paints to appliances to clothing?"
The release of PEN's new report comes on the heels of the president signing
legislation that eliminates lead in toys and either permanently or temporarily
bans six types of phthalates in children's products, which are under the
CPSC's jurisdiction. Phthalates are a broad family of chemicals primarily used
to make vinyl soft and flexible and are found in thousands of products
including toys, garden hoses, wiring and cables, construction materials,
flooring, automotive interiors and medical devices.
Felcher's report identifies many similarities between the issues raised by
phthalates and nanomaterials: many of the same products that contain
phthalates are now being made with nanomaterials (e.g., infants' pacifiers and
teething rings); both phthalates and nanomaterials can enter the human body
through multiple pathways, such as the lungs or digestive tract; and
jurisdiction over phthalates in the United States, like jurisdiction over
nanomaterials, is spread over multiple agencies, including the Environmental
Protection Agency and the Food & Drug Administration.
But despite these similarities, phthalates and nanomaterials differ in two
important respects, Felcher says. First, phthalates have been the subject of
thousands of scientific studies documenting their effect on the health of
animals and humans -- some demonstrating a link between the chemicals and
decreased sperm count and sexual malformation in boys -- while little is known
about possible chronic hazards associated with nanomaterials. Second,
nanomaterials are scientifically far more diverse than phthalates, increasing
the complexity involved in understanding their toxicology.
"It took decades of research before lawmakers found the political will to keep
lead and phthalates out of toys. It could take a very long time to research
and ensure that potentially dangerous nanomaterials are kept out, too," says
Rejeski.
The new PEN report includes a number of recommendations Felcher believes will
help the CPSC to improve its oversight of nanomaterials in consumer products,
including:
-- Building the CPSC's nanotechnology knowledge base and expertise.
-- Identifying companies and industries that are currently manufacturing
nanoproducts and request that they submit research studies, risk assessment
data and any information they possess that will enable the CPSC scientists to
assess nanoproduct safety.
-- Urging Congress to amend the Consumer Product Safety Act to give the CPSC
the authority to require manufacturers to identify any nanomaterials in their
products.
-- Encouraging Congress to adopt a section Consumer Product Safety Act bill
recommended by the National Commission on Product Safety in its 1970 Final
Report, which would give the CPSC the authority to promulgate safety standards
for "new" consumer products based on new and emerging technologies, including
nanotechnology.
About Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is the ability to measure, see, manipulate and manufacture
things usually between one and 100 nanometers. A nanometer is one billionth of
a meter; a human hair is roughly 100,000 nanometers wide. In 2007, the global
market for nanotechnology-based products totaled $147 billion. Lux Research
projects that figure will grow to $3.1 trillion by 2015.
The Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies is an initiative launched by the
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and The Pew Charitable Trusts
in 2005. It is dedicated to helping business, government and the public
anticipate and manage possible health and environmental implications of
nanotechnology. For more information about the project, log on to
www.nanotechproject.org.
SOURCE The Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies
Julia Moore, +1-202-691-4025 (work), +1-202-277-1415 (cell),
julia.moore@wilsoncenter.org, or Colin Finan, +1-202-691-4321 (work),
+1-202-841-5605 (cell), colin.finan@wilsoncenter.org
