Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
toxicological.information,.and.outline.measures.for.safe.handling.of.the.materials..
Under. the. municipal. ordinance,. believed. to. be. the. irst. of. its. kind. in. the. United.
States,.all.facilities.that.manufacture.or.use.manufactured.nanoparticles.must.sub-
mit. a. written. report. of. the. current. toxicology. of. the. nanoscale. materials. reported.
and.how.the.facility.will.safely.handle,.monitor,.contain,.dispose,.track.inventory,.
prevent.releases,.and.mitigate.such.materials..The.ordinance.is.set.forth.in.Title.15.
of.the.Berkeley.Municipal.Code,.which.requires.the.iling.of.disclosure.information.
for.hazardous.materials.when.certain.quantities.are.exceeded.[53].
According.to.the.formal.CEAC.Recommendation,.questions.about.the.need.for.
the.city.to.implement.a.nanoparticle.reporting.requirement.arose.during.the.design.
phase.of.the.molecular.foundries.at.the.University.of.California.and.Lawrence.Berke-
ley.Lab;.both.institutions.had.indicated.that.they.lacked.special.knowledge.or.tools.
to.manage.nanoparticles.[54]..After.consideration.and.input.from.others,.including.
the.EPA,.“the.recommended.self-reporting.was.considered.to.be.a.minimum.regula-
tion.for.nanotechnology.facilities”.[54].
The.CEAC.Recommendation.notes.that,.in.many.cases,.businesses.“will.not.ind.
suficient.information.to.determine.the.health.impacts.of.a.material..In.such.cases,.it.
is.hoped.that.a.precautionary.approach.[will].be.used.when.handling.the.materials”.
[54]..It.further.states:
“Nanoparticles.behave.differently.[than].macro-particle.compounds.and.should.be.han-
dled.and.mitigated.differently..Handlers.may.not.know.much.about.the.materials.they.
are.handling,.as.new.information.is.published,.the.handlers.should.keep.updating.their.
knowledge,.since.government.is.not.doing.a.good.job.regulating.these.materials.”
Finally,.although.the.no.action.alternative.was.considered.by.the.CEAC,.“clearly.
no.action.has.potentially.unacceptable.consequences.for.nanoparticle.workers.and.
the.community”.[54].
.0.
Cambridge, Massachusetts, ordinance
According. to. recent. press. reports,. the. Cambridge,. Massachusetts,. City. Council. is.
contemplating.becoming.the.second.municipality.in.the.country.to.regulate.nano-
technology.[55]..In.a.recent.vote,.the.council.requested.that.the.city's.public.health.
department.undertake.a.study.of.the.Berkeley.ordinance.and.assess.whether.a.similar.
enactment.made.sense.for.Cambridge,.which.is.home.to.quite.a.few.nanotechnology.
entities.
. PRiVate nanoteChnologY stewaRdshiP initiatiVes
Environmental. Defense. (ED). and. DuPont. formally. announced. in. June. 2007. the.
release.of.their.
Nano Risk Framework
,.which.deines.“a.systematic.and.disciplined.
process.for.identifying,.managing,.and.reducing.potential.environmental,.health,.and.
safety.risks.of.engineered.nanomaterials.across.all.stages.of.a.product's.'lifecycle'.
