On June 5, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a proposed rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) aimed at protecting workers and consumers from exposure to the solvent n-methylpyrrolidone (NMP). According to EPA’s 2020 risk evaluation, NMP poses serious health risks, including miscarriages, reduced fertility, and damage to the liver, kidneys, immune system, and nervous system.
If finalized, the rule would limit NMP concentrations in certain consumer and commercial products, establish strict workplace health controls for many uses of NMP, and ban some uses where safer alternatives exist. "We’re making great strides in our efforts to protect people’s health from exposure to chemicals like NMP," said Michal Freedhoff, Assistant Administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. "Our proposed commonsense worker protections would keep people safe while also ensuring that NMP could continue to be used as needed."
NMP is utilized in manufacturing electronics, polymers, agricultural chemicals, petrochemical products, adhesives and sealants, paints and coatings among other applications. The proposed rule includes a concentration limit of no greater than 45% for glues and adhesives containing NMP. It also sets container size limits and labeling requirements for other consumer products to prevent their use in commercial settings.
The EPA is proposing a Workplace Chemical Protection Program (WCPP) to safeguard workers from nearly all industrial and commercial uses of NMP. This program includes measures such as preventing direct skin contact with NMP one year after the rule's finalization. Many sectors are expected already to have implemented necessary exposure controls.
For specific occupational conditions involving paints, adhesives, inks, coatings and soldering materials using NMP, prescriptive workplace controls will be required by EPA. These include concentration limits and personal protective equipment mandates.
The proposal seeks to ban the commercial use of NMP in automotive care products; cleaning and degreasing products; metal products; furniture care products; antifreeze; de-icing products; lubricants; fertilizers; and other agricultural chemical manufacturing processes due to safety concerns or discontinued usage.
EPA encourages public comments on this proposed rule during a 45-day period following its publication in the Federal Register via docket EPA-HQ-OPPT-2020-0744. A public webinar providing an overview of the proposal will be held on Thursday, June 20 at 1:00 p.m. EDT.
