- Comments on draft CCL 6 warn that unresolved questions around terminology, measurement and health relevance could complicate future screening and rulemaking under the Safe Drinking Water Act
The American Cleaning Institute (ACI) urged the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to ensure that any future action on microplastics under the Safe Drinking Water Act is grounded in validated methods, fit-for-purpose definitions and a stronger underlying evidence base.
ACI views were expressed in comments submitted on EPA’s Draft Sixth Drinking Water Contaminant Candidate List (CCL 6).
In its filing, ACI argues that EPA’s current review comes at a stage when core scientific and technical questions remain unsettled, including how microplastics should be defined for regulatory purposes, which analytical methods are sufficiently reliable for monitoring, and how occurrence data should be interpreted across sources and particle types. ACI confirmed that they agreed with EPA’s previous approach to researching microplastics, which narrowed in on solid microparticles.
ACI also called for coordination across EPA offices and with other federal bodies so that drinking water policy does not outpace the state of the science or diverge from related federal research efforts.
“EPA’s decision to include microplastics on draft CCL 6 elevates the importance of using clear terminology, validated measurement tools and a consistent evidentiary framework," said Darius Stanton, ACI Director of Science Policy and Regulatory Engagement. "Before future regulatory determinations are considered, the agency will need reliable, reproducible data that can support sound risk-based decision-making.”
According to ACI, EPA will need a clearer technical foundation before microplastics can be meaningfully advanced through later stages of the drinking water regulatory process. The comments point to open questions about how exposure should be characterized, whether available occurrence data are sufficiently comparable and reproducible, and what weight can be placed on the still-developing health effects literature.
ACI said the CCL process should be used to identify research priorities and improve consistency in future screening, prioritization, and risk-based decision-making.
ACI said it will continue engaging with EPA as the agency evaluates comments on draft CCL 6 and considers how to approach microplastics within its broader drinking water and chemicals policy framework, including questions of method standardization, data interpretation and interoffice consistency.
The American Cleaning Institute® (ACI – www.cleaninginstitute.org) is the Home of the U.S. Cleaning Products Industry® and represents the $60 billion U.S. cleaning product supply chain. ACI members include the manufacturers and formulators of soaps, detergents, and general cleaning products used in household, commercial, industrial and institutional settings; companies that supply ingredients and finished packaging for these products; and chemical distributors. ACI serves the growth and innovation of the U.S. cleaning products industry by advancing the health and quality of life of people and protecting our planet. ACI achieves this through a continuous commitment to sound science and being a credible voice for the cleaning products industry.