Nonprofit Watchdog CEH Sues Two Additional Companies for Illegally Importing Hundreds of Thousands of Pounds of Toxic Chemicals
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Oakland, California – Today the nonprofit Center for Environmental Health (CEH) filed lawsuits against two companies Entegris and Lubrizol for failing to report imports of toxic chemicals to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, a violation of the Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). CEH also announced it reached a settlement agreement with AOC, LLC, a chemical supplier against which CEH previously filed suit on June 20, 2024.
Entegris makes coatings, trays, filters, and other products and is headquartered in Billerica, MA, and Lubrizol creates additives, polymers, and cleaning product materials and is headquartered in Wickliffe, Ohio.
EPA calls CDR reporting critical for addressing chemical risks and protecting communities, since “exposure information [reported] is an essential part of developing risk evaluations.” For years, CEH has systematically analyzed the import data for companies and chemicals and worked collaboratively with companies to report that data to the EPA.
The lawsuit against Entegris cites two chemicals: cobalt sulfate imports, totaling more than 48,000 pounds in 2019 and phosphoric acid imports, totaling more than 180,000 pounds in 2018 and 230,000 pounds in 2019. Phosphoric acid is a toxic substance that can cause severe health issues through inhalation, ingestion, or skin and eye contact. Phosphoric acid is used as an acidity regulator and preservative in foods and beverages like jams, cereal bars, processed meats, and cheese, and it is also a component of detergents in many household cleaning products.
The Lubrizol suit involves 2-propylheptanol with shipments in 2017 and 2018 totaling more than 876,000 pounds and 32,000 pounds of Di-(2-ethylhexyl)amine in 2018. Di-(2-ethylhexyl)amine is used in some cleaning products and is a hazardous chemical that can cause toxicity through a number of routes, including inhalation, skin contact, and ingestion.
These chemicals were imported between 2016 and 2019 but do not appear to have been reported by the January 29, 2021 reporting deadline as required by the Chemical Data Reporting rule.
“Companies must comply with these vital CDR requirements, so EPA has the information needed to protect public health and our environment,” said Bob Sussman, CEH counsel and former EPA official. “We are pleased to have reached an agreement with AOC, LLC, whose diligent response to CEH’s concerns is to be commended.”
“When companies fail to report the volume and nature of the toxic chemicals they are importing into our country, the EPA does not have the data needed to effectively enforce the law that keeps our communities safe,” said Kizzy Charles-Guzman, Chief Executive Officer at the Center for Environmental Health. “CEH is proud to be a nonprofit watchdog on hazardous chemicals, protecting communities from toxic exposures.”