EPA Releases New Plans for the Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program

EPA’s Endocrine Disrupter Screening Program (EDSP) has released a new Comprehensive Management Plan which will provide guidance for the remainder of FY 2012 through FY 2017. This plan was developed to provide strategic guidance to the EPA staff and managers participating in the internal activities associated with EDSP. The Agency anticipates that this management plan will be a living document. It will be evaluated on an annual basis for necessary revisions to reflect adjustments to program priorities and resources and to shift the time horizon.

The EDSP, established in 1998, has come under fire over the years for its slow progress addressing possible endocrine disruptors. The EDSP issued its first list of chemicals to be screened and orders for testing these chemicals (“Tier 1”) in 2009. This new plan will govern the review of the results from the Tier 1 assays and determination of the need for additional “Tier 2” testing. During the plan period, EPA will also develop its second list of screening chemicals and issue appropriate testing orders for that list. All the data from the endocrine disruptor screening process becomes a resource for the Office of Water when they consider chemicals for the Contaminant Candidate List (CCL), make regulatory determinations, and set Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCL) for potential endocrine disrupting chemicals.

You may review the complete EDSP Comprehensive Management Plan HERE.