DELAYED!! TSCA Form U Submission 2011 PeriodPaula Kaufmann, CIH
We have some news on this years TSCA IUR Form U submission. Well, it really isnt information about the requirements but we do know that this years Form U submission period will not be June 1 to September 30. It will most likely be later this year. So we all can move that task to another segment of the calendar year!
On May 11, 2011, the EPA issued a Federal Register Notice amending the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Inventory Update Reporting (IUR) regulations by delaying the June 1 to September 30 submission period for the 2011 Form U reports. The notice indicated that this delay will not alter the timing of subsequent submission periods (e.g., the submission period from June 1, 2016 to September 30, 2016). This is an interesting statement as one of the changes included in the proposed IUR Rule is a change of the reporting period cycle to every four (4) years from the current five (5) year cycle.
The EPA is delaying the submission period because the proposed IUR modifications rule has not yet been finalized. EPA expects to have the final version of the changes to the IUR reporting requirements in the near future. The revised 2011 submission period will be announced with the publication of the final IUR modification rule.
How does this delay that the EPA rule refers to as a suspension affect what needs to be done for the 2010 reporting period? It seems that the EPA will mandate a new submission period but it is not clear when this will be during 2011.
- We are assuming that the reporting period will remain as the 2010 calendar year.
- Our next assumption, or guess, is that the Form U submission period will shift to September 1 to December 31, but that will require that the final rule on the IUR modifications be published very soon.
As food for thought
As recently as March 4, 2011, representatives from the American Petroleum Institute (API) met with the EPA presenting concerns about several aspects of the proposed IUR modifications rule. One topic the API presented was that when the last set of revisions of the IUR was finalized in 2003 with the next reporting period was extended by one year shifting from 2004 to 2005 with Form U submission in 2006. During 2004 and 2005, the EPA held many workshops and issued clarification and guidance documents.
And for now, we wait for the Final Rule, and hope that the data we have all collected for the 2010 reporting period will be adequate. Our recommendations for what to do while we wait are my January blog TSCA IUR Update What Are the Changes? we are advising Emilcott clients to proceed with the collection of 2010 inventory data with a threshold of 25,000 lbs. Here are a couple of items to keep on your radar:
- Be sure your list of manufactured chemicals is complete. Your list should be based on all chemical processes and imported materials received at the site and not just on the products.
- When calculating individual substance volumes include imported mixtures with those manufactured at the site aggregating all mixtures containing that substance.
...And, Emilcott will continue to keep you posted!
What to do if you need help or have questions?
If you need assistance related to the TSCA New Chemicals regulatory requirements or the potential changes due to the Inventory Update Reporting Rule, Emilcott can guide you through the reporting.
We can also help you navigate the maze of reporting a potential Form U violation from prior filing years to the EPA (See http://www.emilcott.com/services/svcenvcompliance.asp).
As more information becomes available from the EPA regarding the IUR and as testing of the electronic tool begins, Emilcott will keep you up-to-date via EHSWire and our "Regulatory Updates" Newsletter.
Please give me a call at 1-800-886-3645 if you have any questions. |
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