EPA Watchdog: Nano Efforts Lacking - New Haven Independent

(By Gwyneth Shaw) In a blunt new report, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s internal watchdog finds that the agency lacks both the data and the administrative ability to effectively deal with the challenge posed by super-small materials that are increasingly finding their way into consumer products.

The report, released late last week by the EPA’s inspector general, raises few new issues. But it makes plain the difficulties facing a host of federal agencies as they try to ensure safety without stifling innovation in the ever-broadening field of nanotechnology. While a growing body of evidence suggests there are real questions about the impact of nanomaterials on people, animals and the environment, there are few absolutes in this arena.