Friday, September 02, 2016: The American Home Furnishings Alliance (AHFA), in partnership with the International Wood Products Association (IWPA) and the Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association ( ), has announced a Joint Industry Workshop to be held on January 18 and 19, 2017. The objective is to help companies navigate the recently released compliance rules for the federal formaldehyde emissions standard.
In July, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (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 (TSCA), impacts both domestic and imported finished goods.
Bill Perdue, AHFA Vice President of Regulatory Affairs, stated, “Members of AHFA, IWPA and KCMA have been at the forefront of formaldehyde emissions regulation for years – first with the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and, more recently, with EPA. There are differences between the CARB rule and the federal rule, and we all agreed a joint industry workshop was needed to help our members understand those nuances.”
The workshop will be held at The Conference Center at Guilford Technical Community College.
IWPA Executive Director, Cindy Squires also added, “All suppliers of composite wood products need to move quickly to be ready for the roll-out of the new EPA regulations and the new TSCA import certification. Attending this event will help firms jumpstart that process.”
Providing an overview of the federal rule will be Erik Winchester of the EPA’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention, which was responsible for drafting the federal rule and its implementation guidelines.
