TSCA Modeling: Sustainable Futures and QSAR

The US EPA uses computer models as a major component of their risk assessment process for new substances. Models for hazard, exposure and fate utilize submitter, database and/or quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) data to create a conservative representation of the risk associated with the introduction of a new substance to the United States.

With the implementation of the 2016 amendments to TSCA, we are seeing an increased influence of these conservative, model-based assessments on new substance risk management measures, such as Significant New Use Rules (SNUR).

The Sustainable Futures program provides the EPA models to industry for the “pre-assessment” of new chemistry prior to its introduction. However, the interface and output of these tools is not always intuitive and sometimes requires a high level of expertise to input and interpret.

Our Intertek team of scientists, engineers and regulatory affairs experts are happy to use the tools of the Sustainable Futures program to analyze your new substance to identify potential areas of government concern and design a TSCA strategy that is proactive, not reactive.

Our services include:

• assessing your chemistry to determine which hazard modelling is possible
• reviewing your manufacture, import and/or use scenarios to select and run the appropriate exposure and fate models
• interpreting model outputs to determine potential areas of concern
• advising on areas where data generation would improve model accuracy