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Frequently Asked Questions
2012 Chemical Data Reporting

Determining the Chemical Substances Subject to the CDR Rule

9. Chemical Substances on the TSCA Inventory - General

9.1 For what chemical substances must CDR information be submitted?
Under the CDR regulation, reporting is required for any chemical substance listed on the TSCA chemical substance inventory, if the production volume for that substance met or exceeded the 25,000 pounds threshold during the principal reporting year, .e.g., calendar year 2011 for the 2012 CDR submission period (40 CFR 711.8(a)). An exception to this general rule pertains to chemical substances listed in 40 CFR 711.6, which may be fully or partially exempt from reporting requirements.


9.2 Are all substances on the TSCA Inventory subject to the CDR requirements?
No, some substances are fully exempt or partially exempt from the CDR regulation. See 40 CFR 711.6, 711.9, and 711.10 for information about certain exemptions.


9.3 Are chemical analyses needed to report CDR information?
No. The CDR regulation does not require submitters to perform chemical analyses. The information required by EPA is limited to information that is “known to or reasonably ascertainable.” This standard is applicable to all information reported in accordance with 40 CFR 711.15(b).


9.4 How does a person access the TSCA Inventory?
Direct and free access to the non-confidential portion of the TSCA Inventory file can be had via the New Chemicals Program web site: http://www.epa.gov/oppt/existingchemicals/pubs/tscainventory/index.html. The public Inventory does not contain the specific identities of chemical substances for which specific identities have been claimed as TSCA confidential business information; only generic chemical names are included for these substances. Additional information on the development of the TSCA Inventory is available at www.epa.gov/oppt/existingchemicals/pubs/tscainventory/index.html.


9.5 What should a company do if it determines that it manufactures a chemical substance that is not included on the TSCA Inventory?
If a company discovers that is manufacturing (including importing) a substance which is not on the TSCA Inventory and should have been reported to EPA as a new chemical substance, such manufacture or importation is in violation of section 5 of TSCA and could subject the company to enforcement action. If a company finds that it has or may have manufactured or imported a chemical substance in violation of TSCA, contact the Agency at the following address:
Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Ariel Rios Building (Mail Code 2245A)
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20460
Significant reductions in penalties are typically given to persons who voluntarily disclose such information. Note, however, that continued manufacture or importation of such chemical substances remains in violation of section 15 of TSCA, even after a company has contacted EPA, until the requirements of TSCA section 5 have been met. These reporting requirements are distinct from the CDR.


9.6 How do the TSCA Inventory flags relate to CDR and have they been updated for the 2012 CDR submission period?
Special flags are used throughout the TSCA Inventory to identify those substances on the Inventory that are the subject of an EPA rule or order promulgated under TSCA, as well as to indicate the types of full or partial exemptions from TSCA reporting requirements. The following is a list of flags that are used and would be of interest for CDR:

  • E - indicates a substance that is the subject of a section 5(e) consent order under TSCA.
  • F - indicates a substance that is the subject of a section 5(f) Rule under TSCA.
  • R - indicates a substance that is the subject of a section 6 risk management rule under TSCA.
  • S - indicates a substance that is identified in a proposed or final Significant New Use Rule.
  • T - indicates a substance that is the subject of a section 4 test rule under TSCA.
  • XU - indicates a substance exempt from reporting under the CDR Rule, (40 CFR 711).
  • Y1 - indicates an exempt polymer that has a number-average molecular weight of 1,000 or greater.
  • Y2 - indicates an exempt polymer that is a polyester and is made only from reactants included in a specified list of low concern reactants that comprises one of the eligibility criteria for the exemption rule.


The “E”, “F”, “R”, “S”, and “T” flags identify those chemical substances that are subject to specific types of TSCA regulatory activities. These flags are useful for CDR, because they identify chemical substances subject to TSCA regulatory activities that make them ineligible for other CDR exemptions.

The “XU” flag identifies those chemical substances on the TSCA Inventory that are the subject of full exemptions from CDR requirements. The “Y1” and “Y2” flags identify polymers that were exempted from full PMN reporting under TSCA section 5 according to the original Polymer Exemption rule of 1984, and most polymers are exempt from CDR.

The flags in the current edition have been updated to reflect the 2012 reporting requirements. However, please note that you are advised to use the flags only as a guide; you are responsible for verifying whether a chemical substance listed on the TSCA Inventory is exempt from reporting or ineligible for exemption from reporting.


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10. Mixtures

10.1 Are mixtures listed on the TSCA Inventory?
The TSCA Inventory lists chemical substances, not mixtures. However, in addition to individual or separately isolated chemical substances being listed, the particular substances of which mixtures are comprised are also listed. For purposes of the CDR regulation, EPA uses the definition of “mixture” from TSCA section 3(8): “any combination of two or more chemical substances if the combination does not occur in nature and is not, in whole or in part, the result of a chemical reaction; except that such term does include any combination which occurs, in whole or in part, as a result of a chemical reaction if none of the chemical substances comprising the combination is a new chemical substance and if the combination could have been manufactured for commercial purposes without a chemical reaction at the time the chemical substances comprising the combination were combined.”


10.2 Are mixtures ever reportable?
Mixtures are not themselves reported under the CDR, but the individual component chemical substances of a mixture may be reportable. If you manufacture (including import) the substances as part of a mixture, you would evaluate the CDR requirements for each chemical substance in the mixture (e.g., determine whether the production volume for each substance in the mixture was 25,000 pounds or more during the reporting year). For example, for imported mixtures, you need to identify each chemical substance in an imported mixture to determine if the amount of any individual chemical substance in the mixture when combined with the amount(s) of the same chemical substance otherwise manufactured (including imported) at the same site meets the CDR reporting threshold. Note, however, that if you process chemical substances to form a mixture without a chemical reaction by combining domestically manufactured chemical substances you purchase, such that you do not synthesize or produce any of the component chemical substances of the mixture, you are not a manufacturer of those chemical substances and are not required to report those chemical substances under the CDR regulation.


10.3 If a company purchases chemical substances from manufacturers and then mixes it for their own use, do they need to report on the mixture?
A company only reports on the chemical substance that it actually manufactures. If no other chemical substance is manufactured when the chemical substances are mixed together, then there is no obligation to report.


10.4 How does a company report the importation of a solid solution?
Solid solutions should be reported in the same manner in which liquid solutions or other mixtures are reported; i.e., report the amount imported of each chemical substance in the mixture.


10.5 A company manufactures many different compounds containing the metal magnesium, for example MgSO4, MgO, and MgCl2. Is each compound a reportable chemical substance or are they mixtures of magnesium? Should the amount of magnesium in each substance be aggregated and reported as the total amount of magnesium?
The magnesium compounds are unique chemical substances each of which has its own distinct CAS number and entry on the TSCA Inventory. Therefore, the CDR requirements must be evaluated for each magnesium compound and, if necessary, the volumes for MgSO4, MgO, and MgCl2 would each be reported separately. They are reported separately because they are separate chemical substances. The total amount of magnesium in these chemical substances should not be aggregated. Magnesium metal would not be reported unless this chemical substance was also manufactured by the reporting entity in amounts of 25,000 pounds or more during a reporting year.


10.6 Must hydrates of chemical substances be reported under the CDR rule?
For purposes of CDR, a hydrated form of a chemical substance is considered a mixture of the corresponding anhydrous form of the chemical substance and water. It is the anhydrous or non-hydrated form of a chemical substance that is subject to the CDR regulation. The definition of mixture which is used to determine TSCA Inventory listing includes hydrates of a chemical substance or hydrated ions formed by association of a chemical substance with water (see 40 CFR 710.3(d) and 40 CFR 720.3(u)). However, as noted in answer to 10.1, EPA is using the TSCA section 3(8) definition of “mixture” which does not specifically address hydrates. EPA believes that for purposes of CDR reporting it is not necessary to include hydrates separately in the definition of “mixture.” For hydrates, the reported production volume of the hydrated form would be adjusted to exclude water and the amount of the anhydrous (or non-hydrated) chemical substance manufactured (including imported) would be reported.


10.7 How are catalysts reported under CDR?
The CDR requirements for catalytic chemical substances follow the same rules as for other chemical substances. Note that some catalytic substances supported on an inert substrate are considered under TSCA to be a mixture of the catalyst and substrate. If you manufacture the catalyst and the substrate and process these chemical substances to form a mixture, you would report your manufacture of the catalyst and the substrate separately.


10.8 When metal catalysts supported on fixed, inert substrates are regenerated, the catalyst is subjected to high temperatures which convert the metal to its oxide. This is followed by a reduction step which converts the metal oxide back to the base metal. Is this activity subject to CDR requirements?
The metal catalyst supported on an inert substrate is considered to be a mixture under TSCA. Because the inert substrate does not undergo a chemical reaction in this scenario, there is no change in the chemical identity of the inert substrate that triggers CDR reporting requirements. However, conversion of the metal catalyst to an oxide and subsequent reduction to the base metal are both manufacturing of different chemical substances for commercial purposes. If the regeneration is all conducted in the same vessel (i.e., the oxide is reduced in the same vessel in which it is made, without storing the oxide or intending to remove it from the vessel for a reason that is not essential to this chemical process), the oxide may satisfy the definition of a non-isolated intermediate for purposes of CDR and be exempt from reporting for that reason. The metal oxide and elemental metal would otherwise both be subject to CDR requirements. Note, however, that only the amounts of the metal oxide and the regenerated base metal must be reported; in many instances, these amounts will be less than the CDR threshold of 25,000 pounds.

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