Scott Sandler from ABSG Consulting reveals the depth of the changes happening with the latest Rule changes to help ensure that people, plant and processes remain safer in their operations

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recently finalised amendments to the Risk Management Program (RMP) on the Safer Communities by Chemical Accident Prevention Rule. This was initially proposed in August 2022 and has imposed the most protective safety provisions to date for the chemical industry and facility operators.

Following public consultation, CEFIC has presented a paper with six recommendations in support of the European Commission’s proposals to update the existing EU regulation on pharmaceutical precursors.  These are:

Sue Bullock and Richard Bishop of TSG Consulting highlight priority areas for comment following analysis of the UK REACH consultation on the proposed model for registering chemicals manufactured in or imported to Great Britain*

The European Commission has informed India’s Alchem International and its Hong Kong subsidiary of its preliminary view “that they have breached EU antitrust rules by participating in a long-lasting cartel concerning an important pharmaceutical product”. If the EC ultimately concludes that there is sufficient evidence of an infringement, it can impose a fine of up to 10% of the company's worldwide turnover.

Graham Meller of Buttonwood Marketing shares some results from a recent trial of continuous metals monitoring technology

Elementis has announced some promising results from a trial of a new continuous metals monitoring technology at a river by its talc plant at Sotkamo in central Finland. The technology employs micro-discharge optical emission spectroscopy (µDOES*) from Finnish university spin-off Sensmet.

The US House of Representatives Committee on Oversight & Accountability committee has approved the Biosecure Act, which will require American companies to cease working with WuXi AppTec, among other Chinese biotechs, by 2032. This follows a vote on an earlier draft by the Senate’s Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs committee. The Act must now go through votes in both chambers and be signed into law by the President.

The Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU), a €2 billion partnership between the EU and the Bio-based Industries Consortium (BIC) that funds projects advancing competitive circular bio-based industries in Europe, has signed 31 grant agreements with project teams selected in the 2023 calls. As a result, 396 beneficiaries from 34 countries across the EU and beyond will receive nearly €215 million in funding to develop circular and sustainable bio-based consumer products and industrial systems to replace fossil-based ones.