Hydraulic Fracturing chemicals

NICNAS is undertaking a number of activities in relation to hydraulic fracturing chemicals used to extract Coal Seam Gas (CSG). It is currently working with other Australian Government agencies to formulate a systematic approach to assessing these chemicals.

NICNAS is also liaising with industry, government agencies and with other publicly available sources of information to determine the number and types of chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing. A list of chemicals potentially used in CSG extraction has been developed; it includes their functions and regulatory status in Australia.

NICNAS intends to produce chemical safety information sheets for government, industry and community sectors, when data on these chemicals becomes available to NICNAS.

NICNAS has provided expert advice to the Senate Standing Committee on Rural Affairs and Transport examining the impact of Mining on the Murray Darling Expert Scientific Committee.

On Monday 21 November 2011 the Prime Minister announced:

• $150 million to establish a new Independent Expert Scientific Committee that will provide scientific advice to governments about relevant coal seam gas and large coal mining approvals where they have significant impacts on water; oversee research on impacts on water resources from coal seam gas and large coal mining projects; and commission and fund water resource assessments for priority regions.
• Establish a new National Partnership Agreement with the states through COAG, agreeing that the Commonwealth and states have to take into account the advice of the Committee in their assessment and approval decisions.
• Provide $50 million in incentive payments to the states to deliver this outcome.
• Mandate that the Independent Expert Scientific Committee publicly disclose its advice to ensure local communities have all the best information available to them.

The CEF has a keen interest in this national public interest issue and will continue to advocate accelerated assessments of these chemicals to ensure human health and environmental protection.

Perfluorinated chemicals

What NICNAS is doing 

Perfluorinated chemicals are a group of chemicals, including polymers, that contain a perfluorinated carbon chain. These chemicals are used widely in Australia from non-stick frypans to textiles, carpets, photographic and medical equipment, metal plating, to fire fighting foams.

They are a group of chemicals that are defined by their strong bonds, resistance to breaking down and repellence for stains and water. These qualities also make them potentially harmful to human health and the environment. Some perfluorinated chemicals meet the criteria for Persistent Organic Pollutants, as defined under the International Stockholm Convention to which Australia is signatory.

In 2009, PFOS, its salts and PFAS were added to the Stockholm Convention Annex B, subjecting it to restrictions on production and use. However a number of 'essential uses' are allowed with an additional number of uses to be phased out within five years. Australia is yet to ratify this list of PFOS and related breakdown chemicals on Annex B, however NICNAS has taken action to address the introduction of new perfluorinated chemicals and existing unassessed perfluorinated chemicals in Australia and continues to work closely and in a lead capacity with the OECD and UN on scientific assessments and surveys to enhance global information sources.

While this process may appear imperfect and slow, the CEF urges the Australian Government agencies to prioritise the ratification of this Annex and support NICNAS to regulate this group of chemicals for the protection of human health and the environment as soon as possible. The global community agrees that these chemicals should be discontinued, with a number of countries having banned their use already (examples include the US, the European Union and Canada).

NICNAS plans to release for public comment in 2012 a position paper regarding the ‘data requirements for notification of new chemical substances containing a perfluorinated carbon chain’. The CEF will be invited to contribute and will assist in the consultation wherever possible.

You can find out more about what NICNAS has been doing in relation to perfluorinated chemicals at: http://nicnas.gov.au/Publications/NICNAS_Alerts.asp.

Review of the National Industrial Chemicals Notification and Assessment Scheme

The Commonwealth Government has announced a Better Regulation Ministerial Partnership (BRMP) between the Minister for Finance and Deregulation and the Minister for Health and Ageing to ‘evaluate and make recommendations on the regulatory settings for the notification, assessment and regulation of industrial chemicals'.  The Department of Health and Ageing and the Department of Finance and Deregulation have commenced a review of NICNAS to inform the Partnership.

The first part of the process saw the appointment of a consultancy to initiate discussions with stakeholders and with NICNAS. A call was made for initial submissions from interested parties by December 14 2011 (see Media Release - available at: http://www.health.gov.au/internet/ministers/
publishing.nsf/Content/mr-yr11-ck-ck046.htm - from the Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Ageing, Hon Catherine King MP). The CEF met with the consultants and staff from the Department of Health prior to the CEF 27 meeting, and made a short submission. Members of the CEF have also made submissions on behalf of their own organisations. 

The next step will be the release of a discussion paper in the first quarter of 2012 with a general invitation for submissions. The CEF urges interested members of the public to submit their views on the regulation of industrial chemicals in Australia.

It should be noted that the Commonwealth Government has stated that any proposed changes to the regulatory arrangements for industrial chemicals should not weaken human health and environmental protection.

Symposium on Nanoregulation

The many complex issues surrounding the regulation of nanotechnology were aired at a Symposium on Nanoregulation held in Sydney on 9 November 2011. Organised jointly by NICNAS and the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA), the Symposium featured local and overseas experts in the field.

Nanotechnology has potential applications in many hugely valuable processes and products but at the same time may pose unknown risks to the environment and worker and consumer safety. Dr Karin Wiench from the chemical manufacturer BASF listed applications such as paint, concrete, computer chips, photovoltaics and antimicrobials. But, as Ms Georgia Miller (Friends of the Earth) emphasised, there’s a risk of this very significant economic potential producing a gold-rush mentality with claims of huge benefits coupled with very narrowly defined risks. Unassessed nanoproducts are already out in the marketplace presenting a real challenge to our existing regulatory structures.

Ms Miller said we should heed the lessons from history, such as asbestos, for which early warning signs were ignored. This point was also taken up by Professor Michael Roberts from the University of South Australia who emphasised that risk assessment should not be based on toxicology alone. He quoted the example of DDT which is harmless in the short term but persists in the environment and accumulates in fatty tissue.

The keynote speaker, Professor Kenneth Dawson (University College, Dublin), presented his research that shows how radically nanoparticles can differ from equivalent conventional materials in their interactions with living cells. He emphasised that we need a deeper understanding of these issues before novel nanomaterials can be effectively regulated to protect public health and the environment.

Dr Philippe Martin, the Principal Administrator, Health and Consumers Directorate-General at the European Commission - and the third international guest at the symposium - spoke about the international regulation of nanotechnology, the need for it, and the challenges. Dr Martin manages emerging issues at the science/policy interface for the Health and Consumers' Directorate-General of the European Commission (SANCO) and, specifically, nanotechnologies. His team supports the Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR).

For more information on the 2011 Nanoregulation Symposium, see: http://www.apvma.gov.au/news_
media/events/nanoregulation_symposium_2011.php

Hexabromocyclododecane draft assessment

HBCD

Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) is used as a flame retardant. A large volume of HBCD ends up in articles, mainly based on polystyrene, used in the construction and building and HBCD can be slowly released from these materials into the environment.

And consumers using treated products, such as automotive upholstery, can be exposed to HBCD that diffuses out of such materials. There is evidence to indicate that HBCD is persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic, especially to aquatic organisms; it meets the persistent organic pollutants (POPs) criteria under the Stockholm Convention on POPs.

In 2001, because of concerns of widespread use of flame retardants in households and industry, NICNAS assessed the extent of their use in Australia and recommended that a full risk assessment be made, once testing of the chemicals had been completed internationally.

The Hexabromocyclododecane Draft Assessment Report was published in November 2011 and responses to requests to amend the report were published in February 2012 (see: www.nicnas.gov.au/Industry/Existing_Chemicals/PEC_
Declarations/Special_Gazette_Hexabromocyclododecane_
PDF.pdf).

The report contains three main recommendations: 

• That an OHS hazard classification be included in the Hazardous Substances Information System (HSIS) and suppliers and employers to note the hazard classification and amend Material Safety Data Sheets and labels accordingly.
• That manufacturers and importers of HBCD-containing products and articles should move away from the import and use of HBCD, HBCD products and articles containing HBCD, in applications where safer alternatives and technologies are commercially available.
• That the Standing Council on Environment and Water (see: http://www.ephc.gov.au/) develop an action plan to address the currently unacceptable risks of HBCD levels in the Australian environment.
   

Final ISG meeting

Implementation Steering Group

The final meeting of the Implementation Steering Group (ISG) was held on Thursday 1 December 2011. This group – which included both industry and community representatives – developed a framework for the assessment and prioritisation of chemicals on the Australian Inventory Chemical Substances (AICS). The AICS currently has over 38,000 chemicals which have not been assessed for their effects on human health and the environment.

The ISG considered a number of options for prioritisation before recommending a new inventory multi-tiered assessment and prioritisation framework (IMAP). The first stage will occur over four years. The ISG requested that chemicals which have been identified as of concern (for example, carcinogenic, mutagenic or reproductive toxins and chemicals found in umbilical cord blood) and chemicals for which there has been action overseas, be given the highest priority.

The ISG will not meet again, however options for ongoing stakeholder engagement were discussed, including a proposal for a forum to discuss progress and any concerns, and for a twice-yearly forum to discuss progress of the IMAP to keep the process transparent and on track. As yet, no formal decision has been taken by NICNAS on this matter.