EPA, CARB Officials Headline January Formaldehyde Workshop

December 5, 2016  by Larry Thomas in Industry, Legal, Special Events   

The workshop, scheduled for Jan. 18-19 at The Conference Center at Guilford Technical Community College in Colfax, N.C., is being organized by the American Home Furnishings Alliance and promoted by several other trade associations.

In addition to the EPA and CARB officials, confirmed participants include experts in the areas of import declarations, domestic and international third-party certification, supply chain management for composite wood products and compliance document management.

“We don’t expect to be able to assemble this lineup again. This is a unique opportunity to gain a thorough understanding of the new rule and its impact on your business,” said Bill Perdue, AHFA’s vice president of regulatory affairs.

In July, the EPA issued its final rule to regulate formaldehyde emissions from composite wood products used as component parts in finished goods sold in the United States. The rule, which added Title VI to the Toxic Substances Control Act, impacts domestic and imported finished goods.

The rule is expected to be published in the Federal Register before the end of the year, and publication will trigger the beginning of the compliance timeline for home furnishings companies.

Providing an overview of the federal rule at the January workshop will be Erik Winchester of the EPA’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention, which was responsible for drafting the standard and its implementation guidelines.

Additional confirmed presenters for the two-day workshop include:

• Jackson Morrill, president of the Composite Panel Association, who will address the North American structure for accreditation bodies and third-party certifiers.
• Travis Snapp, founder and president of Benchmark International, covering the international structure for accreditation bodies and third-party certifiers.
• Michael Sullivan of the law firm Womble Carlyle, explaining Section 770.3 labeling, including developing and implementing a system for demonstrating compliance for fabricators, importers, distributors and retailers.
• Mark Duvall, Beveridge and Diamond PC, addressing the development and implementation of measures to demonstrate compliance with the TSCA import certification – critical for any company importing composite wood products.
• Jill Witter, secretary and chief compliance and legal officer of Lumber Liquidators, who will describe the public firestorm that erupted in 2015 after her company was featured on “60 Minutes,” and how that affected the company’s CWP documentation, testing and compliance structure.
• Lynn Baker, California Air Resources Board, who will describe the similarities and differences between the CARB and EPA rules.

In addition, two resin suppliers, Hexion and Ecosynthetix, have been invited to provide an overview of emerging technology in NAF (no-added-formaldehyde) resins. Hexion is a leading industry supplier of resins for plywood, particleboard and fiberboard for furniture, and Ecosynthetix produces a bio-based, NAF binder used to manufacture OSB, particleboard and medium density fiberboard.

Perdue noted that, while many case goods companies are signed up to attend the workshop, only a few upholstery companies have registered.

“This raises the concern that upholstery companies may not realize the new rule applies to them, if they are using hardwood/plywood frames,” he said.

Perdue said he is also concerned about smaller companies that do not ship products to California and are not familiar with the California formaldehyde standard on which the federal standard is based. The learning curve for these companies will be especially steep, he said.

“The compliance timeline in the federal rule is generous. It gives companies time to figure this out. But you don’t want to get caught asleep at the wheel,” he cautioned.

The workshop also has been promoted by the Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Assn., the International Wood Products Assn., the Composite Panel Assn., the Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturers Assn., and the Home Furnishings Assn.

For additional information, visit www.ahfa.us.