Nanotechnology Lawyer & Attorney : Porter Wright Morris & Arthur : Nanotechnology Law Report - Germanium nanobead image provided by UT-Battelle, which manages Oak Ridge National Laboratory for the Department of Energy

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Formed in 1946, the Soil Association is the largest and oldest organic food certification and advocacy organization in the U.K.  The Soil Association offers product certification to farmers, packers, retailers, clothing makers, and health and beauty product manufacturers both in the U.K. and internationally.  Notably, the Soil Association claims to certify 2,600 individual products from 80 manufacturers in the health and beauty sector.  The Soil Association claims its standards are more rigorious than those set by the European Union.  The group recently said it will not certify products containing nanoparticles:

The Soil Association is the first organization in the world to ban nanoparticles.  There should be no place for nanoparticles in health and beauty products or food.

As all products certified by the Soil Association are marked with the organization's logo, its rejection of products containing nanoparticles thus creates a "reverse" label many advocacy groups will undoubtedly embrace.  Simply put, products with the Soil Association logo are "nano-free."

The group's new rules focus on man-made nanoparticles "whose basic partical size is less than 125nm and whose mean particle size is less than 200nm."

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The ink isn't dry yet, and we haven't had a chance to go through it in detail, but be aware that US EPA has officially released its Nanoscale Materials Stewardship Program.  Details on the program can be found here, and prior discussion can be found here. 

The Federal Register notice on the program's release is here (73 FR 4861), and addresses the comments submitted by interested parties during the draft phase.

More information will come as we have a chance to parse the material.

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Our friends out in Oregon are hosting what should be a very interesting and timely conference -- Greener Nano 2008 -- on March 10 - 11, 2008 at Hewlett Packard (HP) in Corvallis, Oregon.  The conference is being co-sponsored by the the Safer Nanomaterials and Nanomanufacturing Initiative (SNNI) of the Oregon Nanoscience and Microtechnologies Institute (ONAMI), HP, the Airforce Research Laboratory, Nanotechnology Now, invitrogen, and Nanowerk.  The two-day conference will focus on designing strategies to enhance nanoscale material performance yet minimize risk in the face of putative EHS effects.  There will be presentations on cutting edge research in sustainable nanomaterials design, the latest developments in nanoscience and nanotechnology, and the potential biological impacts of nanomaterials.  Speakers include:

David Chen, Founder -- Equilibrium Capital Group;

Patti Glaza, Executive Director/CEO -- Clean Technology and Sustainable Industries Organization;

Robert Hurt, Professor Division of Engineering -- Brown University;

James Hutchison, Professor and Director of SNNI, Department of Chemistry -- University of Oregon;

Rajesh Naik, Technology Advisor Materials and manufacturing Directorate -- Air Force Research Laboratory;

Robert Tanguay, Associate Professor, Director of the NIEHS Toxicology Training Grant
Department of Environmental and Molecular Toxicology -- Oregon State University;

Mark McCullough;

Vince Remcho -- Oregon State University; and

Mark Lonergan -- University of Oregon.

You can see more about the conference and register online here.  Additionally, our readers will be interested in learning about how SNNI is working to achieve its three stated goals: [i] design environmentally-benign nanoparticles designed for use in electronic and optical applications, such as sensing, optics, and photovoltaics; [ii] develop greener methods for large-scale nanoparticle production; and [iii] discover efficient approaches for interfacing nanoparticles with each other or with other components in functional devices.

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InsideEPA reported earlier today that Wisconsin State Assembly Representative Terese Berceau has asked three Wisconsin agencies to institute a nanoscale materials registry with several proposed reporting requirements.  In her December 3, 2007 letter to the Wisconsin Departments of Natural Resources; Health and Family Services; and Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, the Madison-based representative suggested a system requiring the reporting of:

• Type, form, and amount of nanoscale materials being produced by reporting entities;
• Most current environmental monitoring methods for such materials;
• Toxicological properties of such materials;
• Best methodology for monitoring, containing, handling, transporting, and disposing of such materials in/from the workplace; and
• Information regarding how the entities intend to prevent unintended releases and mitigate same.

While maintaining nanoscale material "measurement" and "accountability" are key public concerns, Berceau leaves it up to the various departments to determine whether the registry should be created by "rule or legislation."  Berceau also notes any registry should protect potential confidential business information submitted in the process.

Regular readers may recall Berkeley, California passed a local regulation amending its hazardous materials ordinance to include nanoscale materials in December 2006.  You can see our prior coverage of the Berkeley ordinance here, here, here, here, and here.  You can also find our Nature Nanotechnology article on the subject here.  We also reported on Cambridge, Massachusetts' potential municipal regulation of engineered nanoscale materials here, here, here, and here and are on the City's advisory panel for the process. 

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Late last month, the U.K.'s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) published "Characterising the Potential Risks Posed by Engineered Nanoparticles: A Second U.K. Government Research Report."  The report addresses potential nano-related EHS issues in the context of five DEFRA task-forces: (i) Metrology, Characterization, Standardization and Reference Materials; (ii) Exposures: Sources, Pathways and Technologies; (iii) Human Health Hazard and Risk Assessment; (iv) Environmental Hazard and Risk Assessment; and (v) Social and Economic Dimensions of Nanotechnologies. 

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An updated version of the National Nanotechnology Initiative's (NNI) Strategic Plan was released last month. NNI's first Strategic Plan was published in December 2004; The 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act requires the plan to be updated every three years. The new version just made it in under the wire.

As our readers may be aware, NNI receives input on nanotechnology issues from twenty-five federal agencies, thirteen of which have their own nano-specific budgets. NNI, on the otherhand, does not have its own budget, but rather "influences" federal spending through its member agencies. One of the four primary goals highlighted in the Strategic Plan is to "support [the] responsible development of nanotechnology," which NNI breaks down into two sub-components: (i) environmental, health and safety (EHS) research; and (ii) research regarding ethical, legal, and societal implications (ESLI). A short summary of the key EHS points found in the Strategic Plan follows after the break.

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Representative Albert Wynn (D-MD) recently issued a statement indicating the House Environment and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee which Wynn chairs intends to hold hearings on what he has described as "serious gaps" in federal regulation concerning the potential EHS risks associated with certain nanoscale materials. Risk Policy Report indicates Wynn's interest in the issue followed a "private meeting" with nanotechnology experts whom the Congressman declined to identify.  Apparently, the Congressman also declined to explain to Risk Policy Report exactly what was discussed during the meeting. 

The Congressman's website indicates the meeting was a "forum on nanotechnology" which included "some of the leading environmental government and industry experts in the field."  Whatever was said during the meeting greatly influenced Wynn.  His official statement indicates "[t]he panel discussion confirmed that the existing statutory authorities are not capable of providing appropriate government oversight to address and minimize the risk of nanotechnology."  Wynn's statement directly contradicts prior position statements by EPA, FDA, CPSC, American Bar Association, and the Bush Administration (among others).

Let's hope the experts Congressman Wynn met with are not the same ones clamoring for more "transparency" in the nanogovernance process.  Additionally, Congressman Wynn should make sure any hearings are designed to relect the true diversity of opinions on this issue.

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Porter Wright Morris & Arthur, LLP, The George Washington University Law School, and the Environmental Law Institute are pleased to announce their co-sponsorship of a new conference -- Nanogovernance 2008.  The conference will focus on Innovative Approaches to Nanotechnology Environmental Governance and will be held at The George Washington University Law School in Washington, D.C. on February 12, 2008.

The morning session will feature speakers on prominent issues surrounding the environmental regulation and governance of nanotechnology.  The afternoon session will be a panel discussion with audience participation focusing on the issue of whether it is possible or desirable to merge existing approaches to create a comprehensive environmental governance regime for nanotechnology. 

Speakers will include representatives from The George Washington University, Environmental Law Institute, Environmental Protection Agency, DuPont, Meridian Institute, OECD, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, NanoBusiness Alliance, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, International Center for Technology Assessment, Environmental Defense, Porter Wright Morris & Arthur, LLP, and others.

The conference schedule, directions, and registration information are available online at:  www.nanogovernance.com

Please also take part in the on-line nanogovernance forum designed to allow interested parties to participate in the conference proceedings and to open a dialogue concerning general nanotechnology governance issues. Comments posted in the forum will be used to initiate the afternoon panel discussion.

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