The deadline to submit comments to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) concerning potential ways that people might be exposed to lead through the use of wheel weights is coming up Friday.
Collision repair businesses would likely be impacted by the EPA’s decision as the list of those its actions would apply to include all automotive repair. The EPA says workers and others could be exposed to lead released through the manufacturing, processing, recycling, distribution, use, or disposal of the wheel weights.
Exposure can also occur when lead dust from these products is tracked into homes and other indoor places.
Lead exposure can cause irreversible and life-long health effects and can be especially harmful to developing children, the EPA said.
Wheel weights are used to correct imbalances in the weight distribution of motor vehicle wheels. Lead is the primary component of many wheel weights, according to EPA, although alternatives including steel, zinc alloy, and plastic-metal composite are now widely available.
An Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) requests information that could be used in future rulemaking to consider potential health concerns associated with lead wheel weights and determine if the use of the weights poses unreasonable health and environmental risks.
If unreasonable risk is found, EPA will initiate a proposed rulemaking under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
Comments can be submitted through regulations.gov and should be identified by docket identification number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2024-0085. Additional instructions on commenting and visiting the docket as well as more information about dockets generally are available at epa.gov/dockets.
In May 2009, the Ecology Center, Sierra Club, and others raised concerns about lead exposure to children from lead wheel weights in a TSCA section 21 petition, which the EPA granted. EPA was asked to “establish regulations prohibiting the manufacture, processing, and distribution in commerce” of lead wheel weights.
In August 2023, the petitioners sought a writ of mandamus from the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to direct EPA to conclude a rulemaking to regulate lead wheel weights.
EPA said it developed the ANPRM in response to concerns raised by the petitioners. EPA is asking interested parties to submit scientific studies about how lead wheel weights are used, the possible ways in which people could be exposed to lead, and information about alternatives to lead wheel weights, among other topics.
The agency says it has made a commitment to protect all people from lead with an emphasis on high-risk communities as outlined in its “Strategy to Reduce Lead Exposures and Disparities in U.S. Communities.”
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Featured image: Stock photo of lead wheel weights. (Credit: Ratchat/iStock)
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EPA seeks comments by May 3 on adding lead wheel weights to toxic substances list
By Lurah Lowery onBusiness Practices
The deadline to submit comments to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) concerning potential ways that people might be exposed to lead through the use of wheel weights is coming up Friday.
Collision repair businesses would likely be impacted by the EPA’s decision as the list of those its actions would apply to include all automotive repair. The EPA says workers and others could be exposed to lead released through the manufacturing, processing, recycling, distribution, use, or disposal of the wheel weights.
Exposure can also occur when lead dust from these products is tracked into homes and other indoor places.
Lead exposure can cause irreversible and life-long health effects and can be especially harmful to developing children, the EPA said.
Wheel weights are used to correct imbalances in the weight distribution of motor vehicle wheels. Lead is the primary component of many wheel weights, according to EPA, although alternatives including steel, zinc alloy, and plastic-metal composite are now widely available.
An Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) requests information that could be used in future rulemaking to consider potential health concerns associated with lead wheel weights and determine if the use of the weights poses unreasonable health and environmental risks.
If unreasonable risk is found, EPA will initiate a proposed rulemaking under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
Comments can be submitted through regulations.gov and should be identified by docket identification number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2024-0085. Additional instructions on commenting and visiting the docket as well as more information about dockets generally are available at epa.gov/dockets.
In May 2009, the Ecology Center, Sierra Club, and others raised concerns about lead exposure to children from lead wheel weights in a TSCA section 21 petition, which the EPA granted. EPA was asked to “establish regulations prohibiting the manufacture, processing, and distribution in commerce” of lead wheel weights.
In August 2023, the petitioners sought a writ of mandamus from the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to direct EPA to conclude a rulemaking to regulate lead wheel weights.
EPA said it developed the ANPRM in response to concerns raised by the petitioners. EPA is asking interested parties to submit scientific studies about how lead wheel weights are used, the possible ways in which people could be exposed to lead, and information about alternatives to lead wheel weights, among other topics.
The agency says it has made a commitment to protect all people from lead with an emphasis on high-risk communities as outlined in its “Strategy to Reduce Lead Exposures and Disparities in U.S. Communities.”
Images
Featured image: Stock photo of lead wheel weights. (Credit: Ratchat/iStock)
More information
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