Saturday, August 27, 2016
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently issued a final ruling on the “Formaldehyde Emission Standards for Composite Wood Products”.
In summary, the final rule contains several provisions that will nationalize the California state standards on formaldehyde emissions for composite wood products, with provisions including the following bullet points:
• Extending the compliance date for testing and certifying laminated products to seven years from the publication date of the Final Rule.
• Limiting testing and certifying requirements to only those laminated products that use wood or woody grass veneers and certain glue lines.
• Exempting laminated products from testing and certification requirements where no- added formaldehyde and phenol-formaldehyde resins are used to attach a veneer.
• Allowing reduced testing and certification requirements for manufacturers of composite wood products that use no-added formaldehyde-based resins or ultra-low emitting formaldehyde resins.
The rule is expected to be published in the Federal Register within the coming days. The Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturing Association (KCMA), works as a key advocate for the cabinet industry by partnering with other associations and public interest groups to evaluate the impact of public policy issues on EPA’s members.
There will be a presentation and Q&A session held on the EPA Formaldehyde Rule at the KCMA Annual Management Conference in October. Additionally, KCMA will be co-hosting a joint workshop organized by the American Home Furnishings Alliance (AHFA) in January of 2017 to help their members navigate the recently released compliance rules for the federal formaldehyde emissions standard.