By Jeryl L. Olson, Eric E. Boyd and Craig B. Simonsen

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) is hosting a meeting on May 31, 2012, by invitation only, with industry and nongovernmental organizational representatives, to discuss the public release of information submitted by industry under the Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) rule. The meeting is by invitation only because the Agency hopes that the meeting will be better focused and more fruitful than if it were open to the public.

An Agency representative confirmed to us this morning that the meeting is scheduled for 10 a.m. to noon in Room 4225, EPA East Building, 1201 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, D.C. According to EPA, the questions it is posing for the discussion include what types of electronic search capabilities it should provide to help interested parties review the information, and which types of data analyses should be submitted in the near term and what types in the long term.

In August 2011, EPA issued the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Chemical Data Reporting Rule, previously referred to as the Inventory Update Reporting (IUR) Modifications Rule. According to the Agency, “the purpose of this program is to collect quality screening-level, exposure-related information on chemical substances and to make that information available for use….”

CDR submissions on chemical production data, chemical use, and other data are due June 30, 2012.