The EPA recently released the draft risk evaluation for formaldehyde under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for public comment and peer review.

Formaldehyde is a colorless, flammable gas at room temperature and has a strong odor. It’s also found nearly everywhere. People and animals produce and release formaldehyde, and it’s produced when organic materials like leaves, plants, and woodchips decay. Formaldehyde is also produced and released into the air when things burn, such as when cars emit exhaust, when furnaces and stoves operate, and through forest fires, burning candles, and smoking. Also, formaldehyde is used to make many products, including composite wood products and other building materials, plastics, pesticides, paints, adhesives, and sealants.

The Agency’s initial findings determined that formaldehyde poses unreasonable risks to human health. However, these dangers are situational and may not apply to everyone. The draft risk assessment addresses some of the uncertainties in the EPA’s findings.

In preparing the draft risk evaluation, the Agency assessed the risks that arise from ways people may be exposed to formaldehyde from the production and use of products that are subject to TSCA as opposed to exposures from those products that are excluded from TSCA (such as pesticides and exposures from sources of formaldehyde that are biogenic, such as breathing and the decomposition of leaves) and exposures from other sources of formaldehyde.

Those who have the highest risk of formaldehyde exposure are workers who work in facilities where formaldehyde is used, the EPA found. Workers may be exposed to formaldehyde by inhaling it after it’s released into the air or by making skin contact with formaldehyde-containing materials.

“EPA made these conclusions without assuming that worker protections, such as wearing protective equipment, were in place, although EPA is aware that many employers do take measures to protect the safety of their workers,” states the Agency website on the formaldehyde draft risk evaluation.

The evaluation also determined that people who frequently use certain consumer products that contain formaldehyde are at risk. These products include car waxes, some crafting supplies, and fabrics or leather goods treated with formaldehyde. However, a person’s risk from these products depends on how long and how frequently the products are used, and in many cases, exposures from these products are at the same or lower levels than exposures from other sources of formaldehyde in the home, such as candles or cooking. People may also be exposed to more formaldehyde in their homes if the homes are newer or contain newer furniture because building products and furniture can release formaldehyde at higher levels when newly formulated. Lastly, people living near facilities releasing formaldehyde may have higher exposures than those located farther away.

The EPA also evaluated formaldehyde’s impact on the environment and found that it isn’t expected to last long in water, sediment, or soil based on its physical and chemical properties. The Agency didn’t identify risk of injury to the environment that would contribute to the unreasonable risk determination for formaldehyde.

Formaldehyde’s use as a pesticide is also undergoing a separate review under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). The FIFRA risk assessment, which addresses the pesticidal uses of formaldehyde, will be released in 2024 on Docket #: EPA-HQ-OPP-2015-0739.

Comments on the draft risk evaluation will be accepted on the Federal Register until May 14, 2024, under Docket #: EPA-HQ-OPPT-2023-0613.

The EPA will hold a virtual peer-review public meeting of the Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC) to discuss the draft risk evaluation from May 20–23, 2024. It will also hold a virtual preparatory public meeting for the SACC and the public to consider and ask questions regarding the scope and clarity of the draft charge questions on May 7, 2024. Pre-registration is required to attend, and there are additional deadlines to make oral comments during the meetings. See the SACC website for more information on the May 2024 meetings.