U.S. EPA, TSCA Questions and Answers From the October, 1990 EPA-Industry Living With TSCA Workshop (1992) (ELR Order No. AD-511)

• Author: Carolyne R. Hathaway/William K. Rawson/Ann Claassen/Julia A. Hatcher
• Pages: 425-434

TSCA Questions and Answers From the October 1990 EPA-Industry Living With TSCA Workshop Page 425

TSCA Questions and Answers From

the October 1990 EPA-Industry Living

With TSCA Workshop

EPA

10/92

TSCA QUEST IONS and ANSWER S, OCTOBER,

1992

From the October, 1990

EPA-Industry Living with T SCA Workshop

1. A FIFRA re gistered pesticide is added a s a preser-

vative to a formulat ed product which then is sold as

a rubber lubricant . Since the pesticide is now part

of a mixtu re, must it be on the TSCA Inventory?

No, if the use of the registered pe sticide as a preserva-

tive is considered a pesticida l use as dened by FIFRA

then the pesticide ing redient would not be subject to

PMN or Inventory reporting under TSCA . However, if

the pesticide is not registered for u se as a preservative,

then it is a violation of FIFR A to use it as such. e

mixture includ ing the rubber lubricant is, however,

subject to possible TSCA regul ation.

2. If a chemica l is produced solely for use as an

inert ingre dient under FIFRA , is it subject to

TSCA?

Inert ingredients produced or u sed in the manufacture

of a pesticide are substa nces or mixtu res which can

be regulated under TSC A. In order to be considered

a pesticide, a substanc e must be intended for use as a

pesticide. Inert ingre dients produced or used in the

manufacture of a pe sticide are not themselves regulated

under FIFR A (unless they happen to be pest icides

themselves (see 40 CFR 152)) and, therefore, are sub-

ject to TSCA.

However, once the inert ingredient is placed in t he

pesticide product it comes under FIFR A’s jurisdiction

as part of a pest icide product. at is, under FIFR A,

EPA may prevent a substance from being included as

an inert ingred ient in a pesticide product.

3. If one purchased a T SCA listed material a nd

then determi ned that the material a lso contained

an unli sted material, what can b e done by the

purchaser who h as a commercial intent to use t he

material?

Section 15(2) of TSCA states that it is unlawfu l for any

person to use for commercial pur poses a chemical sub-

stance which the per son knew, or had reason to know,

was manufact ured, processed, or distributed in viola-

tion of TSCA.

However, if the unlisted substa nce meets the denition

of an impurity under 40 CFR §720.3, that materi al

need not be listed on the TSCA Inventory.

In cases where the new s ubstance is determined not to

be an impurity, the manufac turer must submit a PMN

and may be subject to any subsequent enforcement

action.

4. Are hydrau lic uids contained inside a se aled

unit, e.g. an a utomobile shock absorber or refriger-

ation uid inside a n air conditioner, considered an

article si nce they are not intended for releas e? What

about motor oil in an impor ted automobile?

Hydraulic uid in automobile shock absorbers,

refrigeration uid in ai r conditioners, and motor oil

in imported automobiles are considered “part” of a n

article and therefore a re exempt from PMN require-

ments and from TSCA §13 import certic ation. ese

uids are considered to be “part” of the a rticle because

they are not intended to be released or removed from

the article and have no end u se or commercial purpose

separate from the ar ticle. For more information see

“Clarication of the Interpret ation of ‘Article’ under

TSCA”, dated October 1, 1985.

5. Please comment on “impu rities” which impart

the same benet or f unction as the desired c hemical

but are not intentiona lly made, since intent seems

to be a key role.

An impurity is a chem ical substanc e which is uninten-

tionally present with a nother chemical subst ance. If an

“impurity” enh ances the product or is manufactured

itself for a commercial purp ose, it would no longer

be viewed as an impu rity. It may in fact become a co-

product; as such, a PMN would be required prior to

manufacture (import) for a commerci al purpose if the

substance is not listed on t he TSCA Chemical Sub-

stance Inventory.

6. Does the proces s by which a new chemical was

made have any bea ring on its TSCA listin g? For

example, chem ical “A” was made via a cert ain route

for a PMN and NOC. A nother company wants to

make chemic al “A” by a dierent route. Since “A” is

already l isted, can one assume the ot her company

can proceed w ithout ling another PMN?

A Class I substanc e is listed on the TSCA Chemical

Substance Inventory by its specic c hemical identity

and not by its manufactu ring process. If the manu-

facturing proce ss varies from one manufacturer to

another but the nal product is identic al to that TSCA

listed substance , the ling of a PMN is not required by

the second manufact urer.