In a recent webinar, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) outlined its first three areas of exploration for the work plan set to run through 2017. Two of those directly concern the personal care and cosmetics industry: the “potential aquatic impacts and continued uses of nonylphenol ethoxylates and triclosan” and the “potential health and safety impacts of chemicals in nail products.”
The basics
At this stage the DTSC is gathering information not only the ingredients of conventional nail polishes, lacquers, and care products but also on alternative ingredients used in the so-called 5 free, 7 free formulations and the like.
As the NationalLawReview.com reports, the department is asking stakeholders to share data on:
- Chemicals in nail products -- chemical presence, functional use, hazard traits, endpoints, and exposure information;
- Alternative ingredients in nail products marketed as ‘green,’ ‘safer,’ or ‘free’ of specific chemicals
- Product formulations and manufacturing information; and
- Initiatives by manufacturers of nail products to improve their chemical safety.
Through February of 2017, the State is accepting stakeholder comments on nail products via its safer consumer products information management system, CalSafer. And, there is an option to send input that may contain proprietary business information directly to the DTSC.
More details
You can find the slides (which list all candidate chemicals and outline the group’s reasoning) from the DTSC webinar here. And the Priority Product Work Plan is here.