CAA Section 612 Text

SECTION 612. SAFE ALTERNATIVES POLICY.

(a) Policy.- To the maximum extent practicable, class I and

class II substances shall be replaced by chemicals, product

substitutes, or alternative manufacturing processes that reduce

overall risks to human health and the environment.

(b) Reviews and Reports.- The Administrator shall-

(1) in consultation and coordination with interested

members of the public and the heads of relevant Federal

agencies and departments, recommend Federal research

programs and other activities to assist in identifying

alternatives to the use of class I and class II substances

as refrigerants, solvents, fire retardants, foam blowing

agents, and other commercial applications and in achieving a

transition to such alternatives, and, where appropriate,

seek to maximize the use of Federal research facilities and

resources to assist users of class I and class II substances

in identifying and developing alternatives to the use of such substances as refrigerants, solvents, fire retardants, foam blowing agents, and other commercial applications;

(2) examine in consultation and coordination with the

Secretary of Defense and the heads of other relevant Federal

agencies and departments, including the General Services

Administration, Federal procurement practices with respect

to class I and class II substances and recommend measures to

promote the transition by the Federal Government, as expedi-

tiously as possible, to the use of safe substitutes;

(3) specify initiatives, including appropriate

intergovernmental, international, and commercial information

and technology transfers, to promote the development and use

of safe substitutes for class I and class II substances,

including alternative chemicals, product substitutes, and

alternative manufacturing processes; and

(4) maintain a public clearinghouse of alternative chemi-

cals, product substitutes, and alternative manufacturing

processes that are available for products and manufacturing

processes which use class I and class II substances.

(c) Alternatives for Class I or II Substances.- Within 2 years

after enactment of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, the

Administrator shall promulgate rules under this section providing

that it shall be unlawful to replace any class I or class II

substance with any substitute substance which the Administrator

determines may present adverse effects to human health or the

environment, where the Administrator has identified an

alternative to such replacement that-

(1) reduces the overall risk to human health and the

environment; and

(2) is currently or potentially available.

The Administrator shall publish a list of (A) the substitutes

prohibited under this subsection for specific uses and (B) the

safe alternatives identified under this subsection for specific

uses.

(d) Right To Petition.- Any person may petition the

Administrator to add a substance to the lists under subsection

(c) or to remove a substance from either of such lists. The

Administrator shall grant or deny the petition within 90 days

after receipt of any such petition. If the Administrator denies

the petition, the Administrator shall publish an explanation of

why the petition was denied. If the Administrator grants such

petition the Administrator shall publish such revised list within

6 months thereafter. Any petition under this subsection shall

include a showing by the petitioner that there are data on the

substance adequate to support the petition. If the Administrator

determines that information on the substance is not sufficient to

make a determination under this subsection, the Administrator

shall use any authority available to the Administrator, under any

law administered by the Administrator, to acquire such

information.

(e) Studies and Notification. - The Administrator shall require

any person who produces a chemical substitute for a class I

substance to provide the Administrator with such person's

unpublished health and safety studies on such substitute and

require producers to notify the Administrator not less than 90

days before new or existing chemicals are introduced into

interstate commerce for significant new uses as substitutes for a

class I substance. This subsection shall be subject to section

114(c).

[42 U.S.C. 7671k]