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News from CPDA
CPDA PESTICIDE REGISTRATION WORKSHOP PRESENTATIONS AVAILABLE NOW!
CPDA partnered with EPA to hold a very successful Pesticide Registration Workshop on October 29-30, 2008 at the facilities of the Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) in Arlington, Virginia. The workshop featured a full slate of speakers from EPA as well as industry specialists known for their expertise in the field of pesticide registration and regulation. Some 50 companies and firms belonging to the pesticide registrant and pesticide services community were represented at the workshop with a total attendance of 76 individuals. Of this, 25 organizations were CPDA member companies represented by 44 individuals in attendance.
Attendees of the two-day event praised the workshop for the opportunity it provided that allowed audience members to interact closely with OPP staff assigned to the front lines of product registration. CPDA believes that the educational benefits afforded by this free hands-on training session provided value to those individuals who attended and offered members of the registrant community a wealth of information on how to get a product registration approved by EPA. Be sure to read the following reviews of the meeting that our office has received from some of the attendees of the workshop and be sure to click on the header link above to access the presentations.
"Congratulations for the organization of the workshop. I do not want to wait to say thank you until I receive the survey you will send all participants. ..I learned a lot about the US system ... (which in fact is not difficult since I know very little...) but you can be sure that the presentations were very interesting, otherwise I would not have resisted so many hours of sitting, with jet lag, and not falling asleep for one single moment!"
"I want to thank [CPDA] for running such a great workshop. It was really beneficial to get to hear from the EPA folks first-hand. Scott Pace did a great job keeping everything on schedule and leaving enough time for questions and answers…Congratulations on a job well done!"
Membership Update: CPDA would like to thank the following association members for voluntarily increasing their dues for the 2008-2009 fiscal year that began July 1, 2008: Albaugh, Inc.; Exacto, Inc.; Helm Agro US, Inc.; Makhteshim Agan of North America, Inc.; Tenkoz, Inc.; and, UCPA. The ongoing support demonstrated by these CPDA members is paramount to the success the association continues to build upon in representing the interests of generic pesticide registrants as well as manufacturers and suppliers of inert ingredients. In other association news, CPDA is pleased to announce that its membership includes two new companies: MEY Corporation is a supplier of premium quality glyphosate products. OR-CAL, Inc. is a formulator of pesticide products that benefit growers in smaller niche markets often overlooked by other members of the registrant community. Please join us in extending a warm welcome to MEY Corporation and OR-CAL, Inc.
PRIA Fees to Increase 5% Effective October 1, 2008: In the August 5, 2008 Federal Register, EPA published a notice announcing that as required under the Pesticide Registration Improvement Renewal Act, registration fees for covered applications received on or after October 1, 2008 will increase by five percent rounded up to the nearest dollar from the previous PRIA fee schedule published on October 30, 2007. With the 5% increase in PRIA fees, certain application categories will have shorter review periods. The August 5, 2008, Federal Register notice reminds registrants that fee payments must be submitted at the time of application. EPA will reject any application that does not contain evidence that the fee has been paid. Agency staff report that a number of pre-payments have been made by applicants prior to submission of the product package itself. EPA advises that the date the application package is received will determine whether or not an applicant must pay the increased fees that go into effect on October 1, 2008. Submissions received on or after October 1, 2008 will be subject to the new PRIA fees schedule and the applicant will owe an additional 5% even if he/she has prepaid the "old" fee. As such, registrants should make sure that their applications are received by the Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) mailroom no later than 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, September 30, 2008 to avoid paying the additional 5%. To access the Federal Register notice announcing the new PRIA fee structure for FY 2009, please visit http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdf/E8-17936.pdf.
CPDA Secures Membership Seat on Two Newly Formed PPDC Workgroups: CPDA has secured a seat on two newly formed workgroups of the Pesticide Program Dialogue Committee (PPDC). One of these is the PPDC 21st Century/Toxicology/New Integrated Testing Strategies Workgroup which will focus on developing a blueprint for the implementation of a new testing paradigm that calls for combining in vitro testing and computational models to make predictions for in vivo outcomes by using more targeted animal testing. The workgroup will consider how best to communicate complex science to all stakeholders and how best to transition to the new testing paradigm. CPDA has also been accepted as a member of the recently created PPDC Web-Distributed Labeling Workgroup. This workgroup will address several key issues pertaining to the web-based dissemination of pesticide labeling such as what type of information should be displayed on the container vs. the web site, what entity should be responsible for hosting the web site, concerns regarding the synchronization of EPA web-based labeling actions with state pesticide registration activities, and whether a downloaded web-based label should have a distinct life span. CPDA President Sue Ferenc will represent the association on both PPDC workgroups.
EPA Announces Enhancements to ChAMP: As part of its ongoing activities in implementing the Chemical Assessment and Management Program (ChAMP), EPA intends to reset or update the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Inventory so that it will reflect only those chemical substances currently manufactured or imported into the United States. EPA states that at present, of the more than 83,000 chemicals in the inventory, many are no longer being produced or imported. In moving forward with this enhancement to ChAMP, EPA plans to invite companies to certify that they have manufactured or imported specific chemicals within a defined timeframe. Chemicals that remain on the reset TSCA inventory would maintain their current status, according to EPA. A new chemical notice would only be needed if a company decided, at a later date, to produce a chemical that is no longer on the reset inventory. Senior EPA Administration officials anticipate periodic resets in the future in an effort to maintain an updated inventory. In related activities, EPA will proceed with an Inorganic High Production Volume (HPV) Challenge initiative that will allow the Agency to obtain, review, and evaluate hazard and use information on HPV inorganic chemicals. EPA indicates that through a phased implementation process, the Agency will collect data and prepare risk-based prioritizations on inorganic HPV chemicals which would be followed by steps to address Moderate Production Volume (MPV) inorganic chemicals.
EPA has developed ChAMP as the vehicle for meeting U.S. obligations under the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP). The SPP is a trilateral accord that includes the United States, Canada, and Mexico and is aimed at facilitating and promoting the better exchange of information and assessments of industrial chemicals found in commerce. Under ChAMP, EPA has committed to assessing 6750 high and moderate production volume chemicals manufactured and imported into the United States.
EPA Posts Risk-Based Prioritizations for 29 Additional Chemicals: In related ChAMP activities, EPA has posted on its web site Risk-Based prioritizations and supporting documents for 29 additional chemicals that were sponsored under the High Production Volume (HPV) Challenge Program. For a given chemical or chemical category, each Risk-Based Prioritization presents an initial recommended level of concern based on information in the supporting documents, which include a Hazard Characterization, Exposure Characterization, and Risk Characterization. EPA uses these screening-level documents to evaluate chemicals and assign initial priority for future potential action based on the risk concerns presented by these chemicals in comparison with other HPV chemicals and in light of any uncertainties presented by gaps in the available data. To date, Risk-Based prioritizations have been posted for a total of 74 chemicals. The list may be accessed at http://iaspub.epa.gov/oppthpv/hpv_hc_characterization.get_report?doctype=1.
PRIA Content Review Worksheet: EPA has posted on its web site a 21-day initial content review worksheet that OPP employees will use to screen PRIA applications for completeness. To access the worksheet on EPA's web site, click here.
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