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Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are attracting global legal, regulatory, commercial, and litigation attention as no other “emerging contaminant” has. Companies producing, processing, distributing, and/or using these substances must be aware of global legal and scientific developments and take steps now to minimize legal, regulatory, and commercial risk. Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) and its global consulting affiliate The Acta Group (Acta®) have prepared...
Following the April 27, 2026, European Parliament Environmental Committee announcement that the European Commission (EC) would not proceed with a legislative proposal for a comprehensive revision of the European Union’s (EU) Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) Regulation, major reforms -- such as the registration of polymers -- appear to be off the table. Technical amendments to the REACH Annexes through comitology remain possible, however, although it...
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the Prior Informed Consent (PIC) Designated National Authority (DNA) for Great Britain (GB), will update the GB PIC list from 28 August 2026. Regulation (EU) No 649/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012, also known as the GB PIC list, addresses the export and import of hazardous chemicals. Updates to it ensure that decisions to list chemicals under the Rotterdam Convention's PIC procedure for certain hazardous chemicals...
The European Commission (EC) has proposed an update to the European Union’s (EU) Classification, Labelling and Packaging (CLP) Regulation to better align with recent revisions to the United Nations’ (UN) Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS). The UN GHS is reviewed biannually by the UN’s Economic and Social Council’s Sub-Committee of Experts on the GHS to consider new scientific information and learnings from implementation exercises. Subsequent...
August 25, 2026
NGOs Challenge EPA Approval of Two New Chemicals for Use in the Manufacture of Semiconductors
On August 14, 2026, Earthjustice announced that two non-governmental organizations (NGO) filed suit in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) approval of two new chemicals for use in the manufacturing of semiconductors. CHIPS Communities United and Sierra Club seek review of two Consent Orders issued under Section 5 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) authorizing the manufacture, processing, distribution in commerce,...
August 25, 2026
Navigating a New UK REACH Registration for an Existing Substance Without a Lead Registrant
Following the United Kingdom’s (UK) exit from the European Union (EU), any legal entity based in Great Britain (GB) intending to manufacture or import a substance into England, Scotland, and/or Wales at or above one tonne per year is required to submit a registration to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for that substance. This process is typically straightforward. What should a company do, however, when a substance is identified as a New Registration of an Existing Substance (NRES) and no...
Anticipating an increase in the use of recycled plastics, Health Canada has begun a public consultation on a high-level overview of a proposed food packaging framework. Under Canada’s Food and Drug Regulations (FDR), Health Canada currently conducts a premarket assessment of a food contact material (FCM) only when a request is voluntarily submitted. According to Health Canada’s consultation document, this “may limit Health Canada’s ability to proactively identify and respond to emerging...
August 24, 2026
“Pesticides under FIFRA: What’s Happening Now and What’s Next,” September 22, 2026, 11:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. (EDT), via webinar
The Acta Group (Acta®) affliate Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) is pleased to present “Pesticides under FIFRA: What’s Happening Now and What’s Next” to update stakeholders on significant recent regulatory, legal, and scientific developments affecting pesticide and biocide market access in the United States, and to provide a look ahead to potential impacts of the midterm elections. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) continues to...
August 24, 2026
“The Food Quality Protection Act at 30: How It Happened, Why It Still Matters,” September 17, 2026, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. (EDT), via webinar
For those interested in pesticide issues, August 3, 2026, marked an important milestone: the 30th Anniversary of enactment of the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA) in 1996. This groundbreaking legislation strengthened our pesticide laws, creating new standards to regulate pesticide residues in food to protect with a “reasonable certainty of no harm” and additional requirements to protect infants and children, and were a surprise coming out of the first term with Speaker of the House Newt...
August 24, 2026
Environmental Regulation in Practice 2026: New Challenges and Controversies, September 2, 2026, via webinar
The Practising Law Institute presents Environmental Regulation in Practice 2026, examining how changes in federal and state authority, litigation trends, and global regulatory pressures are affecting compliance, transactions, permitting, and risk management. Lynn L. Bergeson will present “U.S. Withdrawal from International Environmental Frameworks and Global Spillover Effects.”...
The Agriculture and Food Section (AFS) is pleased to be leading two sessions at IBA 2026, the International Bar Association’s (IBA) annual conference in Copenhagen, October 4-9, 2026. AFS will present Barriers on the plate: the impact of trade restrictions on global food security on Tuesday, October 6 (9:30 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. CEST) and Foreign investment restrictions on controlling agricultural land on Wednesday, October 7 (4:15 p.m. – 5:30...