News & Press

ACIL Requests Targeted TSCA WCPP Exemption for Accredited Environmental Laboratories

Tue, 17 Mar 2026 15:20:00 GMT

EPA's Workplace Chemical Protection Program (WCPP) under TSCA seeks impose methylene chloride (DCM) exposure limits significantly more stringent than established OSHA standards limits that may be technically unachievable for accredited environmental laboratories even with best-available controls.

Environmental laboratories are already required to use DCM in EPA-validated analytical methods required under the Safe Drinking Water Act, Clean Water Act/NPDES, RCRA, CERCLA/Superfund, and state environmental programs. The new exposure levels are difficult for labs to meet without additional engineering controls that are extremely costly, and may require employees to wear supplied air respirators, which will likely have a negatively impact employee retention rates in laboratory environments.

ACIL requests a targeted TSCA WCPP exemption for accredited environmental laboratories using DCM in EPA-validated analytical methods.

EPA Proposes Temporary Relief to Ensure Lab Compliance with Methylene Chloride Regulations under TSC

Tue, 27 May 2025 20:32:00 GMT

ESS Leadership has met with EPA on numerous occasions throughout the past year regarding this rule. During our last meeting with EPA on April 23, 2025, EPA reasonably assured us that the rule's implementation would be delayed and with that assurance we are pleased to announce our efforts proved successful with this recent announcement.

EPA Proposes Temporary Relief to Ensure Lab Compliance with Methylene Chloride Regulations under TSCA

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to extend various upcoming compliance dates in the final risk management rule for methylene chloride under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) in order to ensure long-term compliance with the rule’s requirements. The proposal extends the Workplace Chemical Protection Program (WCPP) compliance dates for non-federal laboratories by an additional 18 months, to align with the dates allowed for federal laboratories and their contractors. EPA is issuing this proposal to address non-federal laboratories’ near-term challenges with implementation of the May 2024 final rule on methylene chloride.

If finalized, this proposal would extend the following compliance dates for non-federal laboratories: for initial monitoring from May 5, 2025, to November 9, 2026; for establishing regulated areas and ensuring compliance with the Existing Chemical Exposure Limit from August 1, 2025, to February 8, 2027; and for ensuring the methods of compliance, as well as developing and implementing an exposure control plan, from October 30, 2025, to May 10, 2027.

Shortly after publishing the 2024 final rule, representatives from various laboratories using methylene chloride contacted EPA with questions and concerns including on the applicability of the rule and the requirements for WCPP compliance. Many of these laboratories, especially those associated with local governments or universities on fixed budget cycles that did not contemplate these requirements, use methylene chloride in small quantities and somewhat infrequently and are facing challenges completing the rule’s initial monitoring requirements across potentially hundreds of labs in such a short timeframe. EPA’s proposal would avoid disrupting important environmental monitoring and associated activities, while these non-federal labs work to comply with the rule’s new requirements.

EPA will soon publish a Federal Register notice extending the compliance dates for non-federal laboratories. Upon publication of the Federal Register notice, EPA will accept comments for 30 days via docket EPA-HQ-OPPT-2020-0465 on regulations.gov.

While we are proposing new compliance dates through this action, the current deadlines remain effective until modified through this rulemaking. Enforcement of the current deadlines is a low enforcement priority for the agency, and EPA intends to focus its resources on compliance with the new compliance dates that may be established by this rulemaking. EPA retains the right to take action to address imminent and substantial threats to human health and the environment.

Read a pre-publication version of the proposed rule

Wastewater Surveillance for SARS CoV-2

Mon, 28 Feb 2022 15:28:00 GMT

Volunteers from the American Council of Independent Laboratories (ACIL) Environmental Sciences Section (ESS) came to together to support current public health and safety efforts regarding the surveillance of wastewater for genetic material from SARS CoV-2 virus.

ACIL’s Section volunteers, along with CDC, EPA, WRF, TNI and many industry experts, developed this draft Wastewater/SARS CoV-2 checklist. This checklist is based on industry best practices and is intended for laboratory assessors and quality managers to use as a basis to assess the competency of laboratories performing this type of testing and, thus, ensuring resulting data are useful for public health decision-making.

We recognize this is a ‘living’ document and welcome feedback to ensure continued improvements and updates to this checklist.

To provide feedback please contact ruttenweiler@acil.org

ACIL Comments on SARS-CoV-2 Wastewater Data Collection

Thu, 4 Nov 2021 19:21:28 GMT

ACIL responds to CDC Comments on collection of SARS–CoV–2 wastewater and associated sewershed-level case data from participating jurisdictions in the United States to inform COVID–19 prevention and control efforts. This data, however used for public health protection activities, should be of sufficient quality, consistency, and traceability to allow sound and effective public health decision-making. Read More