Posted: Sep 07, 2017 | |
Proposal for a new legislative framework for regulating nanomaterials |
|
(Nanowerk Spotlight) There is a proposal for a new legislative framework tailored for nanomaterials and their applications called Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, Categorization and Tools to Evaluate Nanomaterials – Opportunities and Weaknesses (REACT NOW). | |
REACT NOW is the first attempt to present a truly comprehensive and transparent regulatory decision-making framework tailored for nanomaterials. | |
"It might seem premature to implement a proposal like REACT NOW that is so fundamentally different in the sense that it ends up with semi-qualitative conclusions and non-quantitative estimations about risks," Steffen Foss Hansen at the Department of Environmental Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, tells Nanowerk. "I would, however, argue that we have many of the pieces needed in order to set up a whole new legislative framework for nanomaterials. REACT NOW put them together and provides a flexible and holistic framework that is able to provide timely decision support before the risks of nanomaterials have materialized themselves. | |
"Furthermore" he adds, "REACT NOW limits the administrative burden on regulators as importers of nanomaterials and producers of nanomaterial products will only register truly necessary applications of nanomaterials, and manufacturers are pushed to innovate and create nanomaterials and products that are truly safe-by-design." | |
Hansen proposes his new legislative framework that combines registration, evaluation, authorization and categorization of nanomaterials in a commentary in Nature Nanotechnology ("React now regarding nanomaterial regulation"). | |
Hansen argues that many pieces of existing legislative frameworks, in the U.S. as well as in Europe, still hold a vast amount of weaknesses. | |
For instance, in Europe, there exist several different nanomaterial definitions in areas such as cosmetics, biocidal products, food and feed, which have all been hard to operationalize. | |
Complicating any regulatory effort is the fact that there still is no overview of what and how much nanomaterials are produced and used and why. | |
"Another crucial aspect is that we lack understanding of how different nanomaterials interact with living systems and how to assess the relevant end-points for nanomaterial toxicity and we have a paucity of usable data on, especially, the exposure and environmental hazards of nanomaterials," Hansen points out. | |
Finally, researchers still lack test methods that would enable safety assessment of the numerous novel nanomaterials. | |
Under REACT NOW, the following rules would apply: | |
|
|
"We do not have all the answers to the scientific questions that are relevant to raise, but we know enough to start asking producers and importers to provide information about the nanoform that they produce and/or use in their products," concludes Hansen. "We can provide them with guidance on how to submit this information, which methods to use and how they should explain the opportunities and weaknesses of their characterization and test methods. We also know how to evaluate the applicability of the submitted information and we have clear ideas about how the information itself and the quality of it can be assessed and evaluated and can subsequently provide the basis of an authorization procedure." | |
By
Michael
Berger
– Michael is author of three books by the Royal Society of Chemistry:
Nano-Society: Pushing the Boundaries of Technology,
Nanotechnology: The Future is Tiny, and
Nanoengineering: The Skills and Tools Making Technology Invisible
Copyright ©
Nanowerk LLC
|
|
Become a Spotlight guest author! Join our large and growing group of guest contributors. Have you just published a scientific paper or have other exciting developments to share with the nanotechnology community? Here is how to publish on nanowerk.com. |