Abstract
ABSTRACTThe purpose of this study was to identify, characterize, and assess data needs for ecological risk of household cleaning product polymers currently being used in the United States (US). Because of their range in properties and functions, polymers are used in a wide variety of household cleaning products, including fabric, dish, and hard surface cleaners. Understanding their potential environmental impact is essential for good ingredient and product stewardship. The household cleaning product polymers were first identified using several databases. Of the 185 polymers initially identified, 120 were eliminated from the list because they did not fit the definition of a polymer, were not well defined (e.g., no Chemical s Service [CAS] or trade name only), or were not in current use. Forty‐seven of the remaining polymers had either adequate environmental fate and hazard data and/or sufficient data for conducting a comprehensive ecological risk assessment and were determined to be of low concern by either the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), and/or the Human and Environmental Risk Assessment (HERA) Project. The remaining 18 polymers were determined to need further review because of a lack of publicly available information for conducting ecological risk assessments. Additional data for these 18 polymers could be obtained by accessing privately held data, conducting laboratory tests on their fate and effects in aquatic environments, or by conducting read‐across of similar structured polymers. These steps can be utilized by industry to determine where best to dedicate future environmental stewardship efforts. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2019;15:621–632. © 2019 The Authors. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Society of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry (SETAC)
Highlights
The cleaning products industry has a long‐standing history of environmental stewardship for their product ingredients
Regulatory authorities and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) have focused their attention on the fate and potential effects of polymers in the environment, and in particular, plastic fibers and particles. Because of this interest in polymers, a study was initiated by the American Cleaning Institute (ACI) to assess what is known about polymers currently being used in household cleaning products marketed in the United States (US)
The present effort was undertaken to better understand the landscape of polymers used in household cleaning products and to identify data gaps for conducting ecological risk assessments
Summary
The cleaning products industry has a long‐standing history of environmental stewardship for their product ingredients. Regulatory authorities and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) have focused their attention on the fate and potential effects of polymers in the environment, and in particular, plastic fibers and particles Because of this interest in polymers, a study was initiated by the American Cleaning Institute (ACI) to assess what is known about polymers currently being used in household cleaning products marketed in the United States (US). The physical properties of a polymer (e.g., viscosity, shear stress, adhesion, and flocculation) dictate their function (e.g., emulsifier, solubility enhancer, viscosity modifier, dispersant, or defoamer) in cleaning product formulations These properties determine their fate and ecological effects in the environment, data on physical properties can be utilized in predicting potential ecological toxicity
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