by Web Editor | Dec 10, 2018 | News
SGS has announced that it has become the first third-party certifier (TPC) to be accredited by the Hong Kong Accreditation Service (HKAS). This an award secures its long-term capability for the testing and certification of composite wood products for the U.S. market.
The Hong Kong Accreditation Service is an accreditation body recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to provide services under the Formaldehyde Emission Standards for Composite Wood Products Rule.
Achieving additional TPC accreditation requirements secures SGS’s position in the certification of composite wood products for the U.S. market beyond March 22, 2019 and further positions SGS as a global leader in certifying these products and related services.
In the United States, formaldehyde emissions from composite wood products are governed by the Formaldehyde Standards for Composite Wood Products Act, which is administered by the EPA.
Signed into law in July 2010, this legislation was and became the amendment and Title VI of the ‘Toxic Substances Control Act’ (TSCA). It contains requirements for composite wood panel manufacturers, fabricators of finished goods, and importers, distributors and retailers of composite wood panels and finished goods.
Read more on this from Woodworking Network at https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/woodworking-industry-news/sgs-hong-kong-certifies-composite-wood-products-us-market?ss=news,news,woodworking_industry_news,news,almanac_market_data,news,canadian_news.
by Web Editor | Jun 8, 2018 | News
As of Friday, June 1, it is illegal to manufacture or import composite wood products in the U.S. if they contain excessive amounts of formaldehyde.
An agreement has been reached in the case of Sierra Club v. Pruitt that sets new Formaldehyde Rule “manufactured by” dates for producers and fabricators of composite wood panels to June 1, 2018, for CARB Phase 2 or TSCA Title VI compliant materials, with only TSCA Title VI compliant and labeled products allowable after March 22, 2019.
“CPA and its members are pleased with the terms of the stipulated agreement, which, if accepted by the Court, will ensure that North American composite panel manufacturers and their customers can manage inventories and comply with TSCA Title VI in a timely manner. The settlement represents a remarkable example of cooperation between environmental groups, industry, and the government, which has characterized the efforts on this issue since 2008,” said Jackson Morrill, president of the Composite Panel Association.
“This has been a collaborative effort between Sierra Club, EPA, KCMA and a number of other trade associations,” said Betsy Natz, CEO of the Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association (KCMA). “Our collective associations were able to provide EPA and the Sierra Club with critical information on the practical implications of setting a compliance date that would be unworkable to our respective industries.”
The agreement results from a lawsuit between the Louisiana non-profit Sierra Club and the EPA, in which Sierra Club challenged the EPA’s delay of the formaldehyde limits. Many Sierra members are survivors of Hurricane Katrina. Formaldehyde was used to treat wood products in FEMA trailers deployed shortly after the hurricane struck in 2005.
Read more on this from Woodworking Network at https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/woodworking-industry-news/formaldehyde-enforcement-begins-now?ss=news,news,woodworking_industry_news,news,almanac_market_data,news,canadian_news.
by Web Editor | May 26, 2017 | News
EPA issued a proposed Direct Final Rule, concerning formaldehyde emission standards for composite wood products, extending all of the TSCA Title VI compliance deadlines to account for the delays to the originally published effective date. The rule was published in the Federal Register May 24. The new compliance dates are as follows:
• Emissions, recordkeeping and labeling provisions – March 22, 2018
• Import certification – March 22, 2019
• Laminated products – March 22, 2024
The rule also proposes to extend the transitional period for CARB-certified third-party certifiers (TPCs) to March 22, 2019.
This proposed rule will enter into effect within 45 days of publication in the Federal Register if EPA does not receive any adverse comment within 15 days.
“The federal regulation that definitively addresses formaldehyde emissions from composite wood products sold in the United States was first published in the Federal Register on Dec. 12, 2016, by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. If properly enforced, the regulation can ensure that all products – both domestic and imported composite wood panels and the finished products containing them – meet the world’s most stringent standards for formaldehyde emissions. It also marks the culmination of over 30 years of product stewardship by the composite wood industry, which through voluntary efforts and consistent and progressive work with regulators, has successfully developed products that consistently meet or exceed these tough standards,” said Jackson Morrill, president of the Composite Panel Association.
From Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/woodworking-industry-news/epas-final-rule-extends-formaldehyde-compliance-dates?ss=news,news,woodworking_industry_news,news,almanac_market_data,news,canadian_news
by Web Editor | Nov 4, 2016 | News
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finalized the new rules on formaldehyde emissions for manmade wood products. Under the new regulations, Third Party Certification (TPC) bodies currently approved to provide certification for the California Air Resources Board (CARB) formaldehyde standards will be entitled to provide certification for the new Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) formaldehyde emissions standard. Permission will be granted for a period of two years without the requirement for further approval. After this period, TPC will require accreditation by the EPA for TSCA Title VI certification.
The grace period will make it easier for manufacturers seeking a certified TPC and benefits continuity as the new set of rules, entitled 40 CFR 770, are based on CARB standards. The Formaldehyde Standards for Composite Wood Products Act, signed by President Obama in July 2010 amended the TSCA with the addition of Title VI and required the EPA to create regulations on formaldehyde in manmade wood products. After a lengthy period of consultation, new rules have been announced, which will come into effect one year after publication in the Federal Register.
Regulations 40 CFR 770 stipulate requirements for product labeling, compliance documentation, and for the conditions for approval of TPC and Accreditation Bodies (AB). The regulations also set out the requirements for formaldehyde emissions from composite wood products, component parts and finished goods.
Composite wood producers need to be certified through a program that includes product testing for emission standards and production facility inspections, including requirements for processes and record keeping. The emission standards are based on test method ASTM E1333-10.
From OpenPR: https://www.openpr.com/news/377699/CARB-Approved-TPC-Bodies-Can-Provide-Certification-on-New-US-Formaldehyde-Emissions-Standards.html
by Web Editor | Oct 28, 2016 | News
The EPA, expected to issue soon a final rule to implement the Formaldehyde Standards for Composite Wood Products Act, which added Title VI to the Toxic Substances Control Act.
It’s latest comment period is still open until November 7:
The EPA reviewed its emission inventory and compliance databases to determine if its current information was sufficient to conduct an RTR for the PCWP NESHAP and develop emission limits for the remanded PCWP process units. The available data for the affected population of plywood, composite wood products, and lumber dry kilns was found to be insufficient to adequately review and evaluate the emission standards for these source categories. The ICR will provide specific, required information, including emission inventories, compliance demonstrations, process changes, and information about control technologies/practices adopted since the application of maximum achievable control technology (MACT). Table 1 contains the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes of facilities impacted by this information collection. Only major sources and synthetic area sources for these NESHAP categories will be affected by this information collection.
There will be a survey phase, Phase I, and a contingent testing phase, Phase Start Printed Page 62126II, in this information collection. Phase I seeks to collect facility-level information (e.g., facility name, location, contact information, and process unit details), emissions information, compliance data, control information, and descriptions of technological innovations. Phase I will be sent to all known operators of PCWP facilities that are major sources for hazardous air pollutants (HAP) regulated by these standards and synthetic area sources which used technology to avoid major PCWP NESHAP source status. Phase I responses may contain CBI. The survey will be provided and collected in an electronic format. The submission requires the owner or operator to certify that the information being provided is accurate and complete.
Read more at Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/management/epa-hardwood-plywood-formaldehyde-rule-goes-live-federal-register-october-27-2016
