U.S. – EPA Revises Compliance Deadlines for Formaldehyde Emission Standards in Composite Wood Products

Vol. 1019 | 13 Apr 2018

On March 13, 2018, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California issued an order addressing the litigation over the December 12, 2018, compliance date for the formaldehyde standards for composite wood products issued pursuant to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Title VI. Pursuant to this order the relevant compliance dates are revised as follows:

• By June 1, 2018, the regulated composite wood panels and finished products containing such composite wood panels that are manufactured (in the United States) or imported (into the United States) must be certified as compliant with either the TSCA Title VI or the California Air Resources Board (CARB) Airborne Toxic Control Measures (ATCM) Phase II emission standards by a third-party certifier (TPC) approved by CARB and recognized by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
  • Previously, these products were required to be TSCA Title VI compliant by December 12, 2018.
• Until March 22, 2019, regulated products certified as compliant with the CARB ATCM Phase II emission standards must be labeled as compliant with either the TSCA Title VI or the CARB ATCM Phase II emission standards. Regulated products manufactured in or imported into the United States after March 22, 2019, must be certified and labeled as TSCA Title VI compliant by an EPA TSCA Title VI TPC with all of the required accreditations.
• After March 22, 2019, CARB-approved TPCs must comply with additional accreditation requirements in order to remain recognized as an EPA TSCA Title VI TPC and to continue certifying products as TSCA Title VI compliant.

Some of the other compliance dates remain in effect per the September 25, 2017, final rule that extended the compliance dates:

• The date for import certification provisions from December 12, 2018, to March 22, 2019;
• The date for laminated product producer provisions from December 12, 2023, to March 22, 2024; and
• The transitional period during which the California Air Resources Board (CARB) Third Party Certifiers (TPC) may certify composite wood products under TSCA Title VI without an accreditation issued by an EPA TSCA Title VI Accreditation Body, so long as the TPC remains approved by CARB, is recognized by EPA, and complies with all aspects of the December 12, 2016, final rule until March 22, 2019, from December 12, 2018.

CARB has published a document providing helpful comparison of key requirements of CARB ATCM against the EPA TSCA Title VI formaldehyde emission regulations for composite wood products, which can be reviewed at: https://www.arb.ca.gov/toxics/compwood/comparisontable.pdf

EPA Announcement in Federal Register regarding Court order and compliance dates for formaldehyde emission standards for composite wood products: https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2018-04-04/pdf/2018-06884.pdf

September 25, 2017, final rule can be reviewed at: https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2017-09-25/pdf/2017-19455.pdf

For questions, please contact Dr. Pratik Ichhaporia (pratik.ichhaporia@intertek.com, +1-847-212-8273).