On March 29, 2022, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a ‘Proposed Rule’ in the Federal Register (87 FR 17963) to revise several sections of 40 CFR Part 770- Formaldehyde Standards for Composite Wood. Comments are accepted until April 28, 2022.

The highlights are as below:

1. Updates several voluntary consensus standards under 40 CFR Part 770 .99 to their latest versions

2. Allows for remote inspections in the event of unsafe conditions (e.g., natural disasters, outbreaks, political unrests, epidemics and pandemics) that would prevent a third-party certifier (TPC) from traveling in-person to the area. EPA is proposing to make this flexibility permanent and allow TPCs to conduct the required initial on-site inspection or quarterly inspections and sample collections remotely when in person, on-site inspections are temporarily impossible because of unsafe conditions.

3. Includes certain technical corrections and updates to create additional flexibilities for the third-party certification process, as well as clarifying language as it relates to the production of wood products. These corrections will better align EPA’s rule with the California Air Resources Board (CARB), allowing the two programs to work in tandem with one another in order to create an effective and efficient formaldehyde emissions regulatory system.

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