An important regulation

Four years ago, the California Legislature approved a consumer protection law to prevent the damage caused by numerous chemicals harmful to health that are in commonly used products. It is time for this law to be implemented.

The Green Chemistry Initiative (AB 1879) establishes a process to evaluate potentially harmful chemicals, obtain alternatives to replace them in formulations and find ways to limit or reduce exposure to specific dangerous chemicals.

There are currently 1,200 so-called Chemicals of Concern; from those, the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) will designate “Priority Products.” Manufacturers of these products will have to conduct scientific assessments to basically find replacements for these dangerous chemicals. If they find no such replacements, the options range from expanding the information provided to customers to banning the product.

The law that the Safer Consumer Products program is based on establishes the principle of seeking and replacing chemicals that are known to be harmful. This focus has already been accepted by industry giants like Johnson & Johnson, Procter & Gamble, Clorox and Hewlett-Packard, among others.

Nevertheless, the DTSC so far has decided to include only five products in the Priority Products category, showing restraint in its strategy.

However, there is strong opposition from the industry and some legislators, who say that the new regulation is too expensive for the private sector and will be detrimental to the state’s fragile economy. As a result, they want to postpone implementation.

We think this is an important law for the health of consumers and their right to purchase products that are not harmful. On the other hand, chemicals that one day were indispensable may no longer be. The implementation of this law will give the industry the incentive to consider ingredient replacements that benefit everyone.