Post by Swamp Gas on Nov 1, 2006 10:25:13 GMT -5
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EPA Closes Principal EPA Chemical Library
By Rebecca Carr | Monday, October 30, 2006, 12:06 PM
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has closed its principal library for researching the effects and properties of chemicals.
Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) strongly opposes the closure, saying it will undermine the ability of researchers to reveal chemical hazards in the future. There are some 1,700 new chemicals introduced each year.
“Without this research assistance, EPA scientists have fewer resources to conduct thorough analyses on hundreds of new chemicals for which companies are clamoring for agency approval to launch each year into the mainstream of American commerce,” said Jeff Ruch, director of PEER.
The EPA says the materials will still be available
“The EPA is committed to ensuring unique library materials are available to the general public, the scientific community, the legal community and other organizations,” spokesperson Suzanne Ackerman wrote in an e-mail statement.
Physical holdings of the Office of Prevention, Pollution, and Toxic Substances library will be made available on-line, Ackerman said. Other services will be made available electronically, she said.
Typically, data used in the new chemicals program is considered confidential business information and is subject to sensitive data access restrictions, Ackerman said. This data will continue to be available to EPA scientists through internal mechanisms.
Citing budget pressures, EPA has closed several of its regional libraries across the country.
“EPA’s hasty, buzz saw slashing at its library network is now interfering with its mission of harnessing the best available science to protect human health and the environment,” said Ruch, noting that Congress has yet to approve EPA’s actions. “Given the tremendous public health risks, this is absolutely the last place EPA should be cutting.”
EPA Closes Principal EPA Chemical Library
By Rebecca Carr | Monday, October 30, 2006, 12:06 PM
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has closed its principal library for researching the effects and properties of chemicals.
Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) strongly opposes the closure, saying it will undermine the ability of researchers to reveal chemical hazards in the future. There are some 1,700 new chemicals introduced each year.
“Without this research assistance, EPA scientists have fewer resources to conduct thorough analyses on hundreds of new chemicals for which companies are clamoring for agency approval to launch each year into the mainstream of American commerce,” said Jeff Ruch, director of PEER.
The EPA says the materials will still be available
“The EPA is committed to ensuring unique library materials are available to the general public, the scientific community, the legal community and other organizations,” spokesperson Suzanne Ackerman wrote in an e-mail statement.
Physical holdings of the Office of Prevention, Pollution, and Toxic Substances library will be made available on-line, Ackerman said. Other services will be made available electronically, she said.
Typically, data used in the new chemicals program is considered confidential business information and is subject to sensitive data access restrictions, Ackerman said. This data will continue to be available to EPA scientists through internal mechanisms.
Citing budget pressures, EPA has closed several of its regional libraries across the country.
“EPA’s hasty, buzz saw slashing at its library network is now interfering with its mission of harnessing the best available science to protect human health and the environment,” said Ruch, noting that Congress has yet to approve EPA’s actions. “Given the tremendous public health risks, this is absolutely the last place EPA should be cutting.”
