Following fatal house fire, CPSC warns consumers to stop using LaZ Board hoverboards
May 1, 2017, cpsc.gov
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is urging consumers to immediately stop using LayZ Board self-balancing scooters (known as hoverboards). CPSC has evidence that LayZ Board was the hoverboard involved in the tragic fire on March 10, 2017, in Harrisburg, Pa., which took the lives of two young girls. These hoverboards were manufactured in Shenzhen, China, and more than 3,000 units were imported into the United States.
Statement From US CPSC Acting Chairman Ann Marie Buerkle Regarding LayZ Board Hoverboards
May 1, 2017, cpsc.gov
Acting Chairman Buerkle speaks out on the LayZ Board hoverboard that was involved in the deadly fire in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania that claimed the lives of two young children. “The fire risk with this product is serious. Consumers should immediately stop using and stop charging the LayZ Board—it’s just not worth the risk to your safety and the safety of your family,” she tells consumers in a statement from the CPSC.
Statement of Commissioner Elliot F. Kaye regarding Petition 15-01 requesting rulemaking on residential elevators
April 25, 2017, cpsc.gov
On March 24, 2017, the Commission voted 4‐1 to accept CPSC staff’s recommendation to deny Petition 15‐01, which requests that the Commission issue a mandatory safety standard for residential elevators to address an entrapment hazard between the internal elevator car door and the external hoist way door. Commissioner Kaye explains that the Commission voted to deny the petition at this time because the newly updated voluntary standard for elevators and escalators, ASME A17.1‐2016, appears to adequately address the specific hazard that the petitioners are seeking to prevent.
Insight: Crib bumpers: The current regulatory picture
May 3, 2017, stinsonleonardnews.com
There are currently no federal regulations restricting or governing the use of crib bumpers. While there is also no proposed federal rulemaking regarding crib bumpers, regulatory action may be on the horizon. Both the juvenile products industry and consumer groups have recently advocated for regulation of these products.
Opinion: The right chemistry: Ubiquitous health warnings cry wolf
April 27, 2017, montrealgazette.com
Joe Schwarcz says that warnings have become ubiquitous as a result of California’s Proposition 65, a well-intentioned law that has gone haywire and has caused undue anxiety among consumers. Any substance that can cause cancer or reproductive problems under some condition is a candidate for being subject to regulation under Proposition 65. According to Schwarcz, who heads the McGill University Office of Science & Science, “the problem is that the law is based on hazard, not risk. Hazard is the innate property of a substance or process to do harm, while risk is a measure of the chance that harm will actually occur.”
No major surgery to ACL – but rehab likely. Release of the Final Report on the Australian Consumer Law
April 27, 2017, Lexology
In the first major check-up of the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) since its introduction, the finding is one of good health generally, though with some room for improvements. Consumer Affairs Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ) released its Final Report, proposing 22 changes intended to strengthen and clarify the operation of the law, and a program of research and policy development to future-proof it. More significant recommendations include a large increase in the maximum penalties for a breach of the ACL, strengthened rights to consumer guarantee remedies and the introduction of a new general obligation to ensure that products are safe before market entry.
China Craves Foreign Goods. Students in Australia Supply Them
May 2, 2017, New York Times
Zhang Yuan started her business as a college student in Australia’s mailing items back to her homeland in China, charging a bit of commission. Now, taking orders online, she sells mainly to health-conscious and well-to-do women and says she makes more than $300,000 a year. “The Chinese have always had blind adoration for foreign things,” said Ms. Zhang, 25. “So rather than paying for expensive, made-in-China products that might lack safety, why wouldn’t they buy high-quality Australian ones at lower prices?”
QCC Endorses first batch of quality partner programme affiliates
May 1, 2017, zawya.com
Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council (QCC), the entity responsible for developing the quality infrastructure in the emirate, announced the endorsement of the first batch of affiliates of its Quality Partner Programme comprising applications from 63 commercial establishments in the emirate of Abu Dhabi. The initiative promotes voluntary compliance with the regulations concerning controlled products and legal measuring instruments.
EU weed-killer evidence ‘written by Monsanto’
May 4, 2017, euobserver.com
The EU’s conclusion that a potentially dangerous weed-killer was safe to sell was partially based on scientific evidence that was written or influenced by Monsanto, the manufacturer of the product, an investigation by EUobserver and Dutch magazine OneWorld has revealed. Earlier this year, a US court released a cache of hundreds of Monsanto’s internal emails that showed the firm’s involvement in at least two academic reports on glyphosate, sold under the trade name Roundup.
Texas Becomes 4th State to Launch Universal Baby Box University Program
May 1, 2017, pharmiweb.com
The Baby Box Co., the company behind the global initiative to equip parents with vital education and resources, announced that Texas will become the fourth and largest U.S. state to offer its families a free Baby Box program.
Facing pressure, more schools scramble to confront danger of lead in water
April 30, 2017, washingtonpost.com
Nearly two years after a water crisis in Flint, Mich., triggered renewed pressure for lead testing and remediation in schools across the country, many districts continue to stumble.
School systems throughout the country have wrestled with lead in water for decades, in part because of the intractable problem of lead-bearing fixtures and pipes in aging buildings. Crimped budgets and understaffed districts mean water testing seldom rises to a top priority.
