States push EPA, Congress to curb confidentiality rules for toxic substances

Environment
Source New York Times

Federal law forces companies to provide detailed information to U.S. EPA about the toxicity of the chemicals they use. But there is a catch. The same law -- the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act, or TSCA -- prohibits the agency from sharing that information with the public or even with state and local authorities. States are demanding that the law be changed. "It doesn't seem right that we have to go elsewhere to get information, it seems like the role of the federal government to help support us," said Ken Zarker, pollution prevention manager with Washington state's Department of Ecology.