Document wqXxpLKQqE2943M0GVGp4M7y3

Gw Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen a Hamilton ttso CONNECTICUT AVCNUE, N.W. WASHINGTON, D. C. 20036 iso; moooo January 5, 1981 . WECEIv. - "I JAM 12 1351 / hiAHR MEMORANDUM FOR AIHC December Monthly Report 1. American Cancer Society 1961 Cancer Facts and Figures was released in December. ACS reports that except for lung cancer, age adjusted cancer rates for major sites in general are leveling off or declining. Incidence rates over "several" decades shows a 3% decline for whites and a 9% increase for blacks. 2. Department of Health and Human Services (a) A National Cancer Program. The 1979 Directors Report and Annual Plan for 1981-85 reports that cancer incidence has been increasing l%-2% in the 1970s. The mortality rate increased only 0.3%. The report attributes the remarkable dif ference between incidence rates and mortality rates to the cure rate. It is interesting also that the Report estimates 7%-20% of chemicals are carcinogens. (b) The Surgeon General in his annual report on the nation's health reported that cancer mortality is dropping for those under 45 and has begun dropping for those between 45 and 49. (c) The December Bulletin in the National Toxicology Program reports on the formation of a peer review panel to assure that bioassays are carried out and interpreted in accordance with state-of-the-art knowledge. The Bulletin reports on the results of short term tests on 165 chemicals using salmonella. A teratology program involving testing 12-15 chemicals a year was announced. The research will be under contract awarded to Research Triangle institute. 3. Council on Environmental Quality. CEQ received comments on an informally distributed report entitled "Chemical Ha2ards to Human Reproduction" pre pared by Clement Associates. A panel of "experts" met December AP00052155 to succeed Eula Bingham as head of OSHA 7. EPA (a) Generic cancer regulation. EPA has published a notice closing "tKe^oiiunenT^eFIodon^January 22, 1981. 45 Fed. Reg 84827. EPA opined in the announcement the SAB Subcommittee on Airborne Carcinogens was able to discuss "several" basic scientific issues and therefore the review of the science issues promised earlier is not necessary. AIHC plans to comment ob jecting to the elimination of the scientific review and the peer review of the IRLG Report called for by the Subcommittee. Although no official word has been published the latest information indicates that EPA is revising the reports on individual substances which the subcommittee found to be in conclusive. EPA is also revising the generic regulation to remove all scientific criteria. The regulation will specify EPA's reaction when a carcinogen has been certified to it by a "competent" group. (b) EPA has proposed rules for emissions of benzene from storage vessels (45 Fed. Reg. 83952) and from ethylbenzenestyrene plants (45 Fed. Reg. 83448). (c) The Supreme Court has ruled that EPA is not re quired to grant cost variances to 1977 pollution control effluent limitations issued under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. (Note the Court did not deal with variances under 301(c) for the 1983 limitations). The Court upheld the EPA "fundamentally different" variance for 1977 adopted by EPA. EPA v. National Crushed Stone Assn.r No. 79-770, December 2, 1980. (d) The Superfund legislation passed by the lame duck Congress and signed by the President requires a report on all non permitted releases of hazardous substances to be made immediately. Another provision requires past and present owners of hazardous waste facilities to notify EPA by June 9, 1981 of the existence of such facilities and any potential releases from them. (e) Toxic Substances Testing Committee. The time to comment on the i960 list of 107 chemicals selected for review by the Committee (see 45 Fed. Reg. $6501) has been extended to April 6, 1981. 45 Fed. RegT~81257. (f) Ethylene Debromide. EPA issued a notice con cluding that the rebuttable presumption for oncogenicity, car cinogenicity, mutagenicity and reproductive disorders had not been rebutted. EPA announced its intention to ban certain pesticidal uses of EDB. 45 Fed. Reg. 81516. (g) Love Canal. A subcommittee of the Science Ad visory Panel criticized EPA for failing to develop an overall -3- AP00052156