Coalition for Chemical Safety Blog

TSCA and Job Protection

Let’s be clear.  The Coalition for Chemical Safety absolutely believes that protecting American jobs should be an important factor in TSCA reform.  But it’s not just the chemistry industry that will be affected by that reform.

Let’s just take one iconic American industry and use it as an example – automobiles.  There’s no need to recount the woes of the Big Three.  Everybody knows.

What everybody doesn’t know is everything those iconic American companies are doing to retool for a modern economy.  Of course, you’ve probably heard of the Chevy Volt, the soon to be marketed electric car.  But, the fact is, each of these companies is working on modern designs that could vastly reduce our nation’s dependence on foreign oil.

Chemistry plays a big role in this.  Lightweight materials for body and engine parts are made with chemicals.  The cars, be they straight up electric or hybrid, run on batteries, which are plastic boxes full of chemicals – and American scientists are working hard to make them more powerful and longer lasting.

All of that can come to a screeching halt if TSCA reform is done wrong. Some of the chemicals involved are harmful if misused.  If used as intended, however, they are safe. In short, if TSCA is done right, the chemical innovation that will lead to the cars of the future, made here in America, will continue.  This means we’ll have a cleaner environment,  a continuing leadership role for the United States in a major sector of the global economy, and jobs, jobs, jobs.

It is about safety for all of us.  It is about innovation for all of us.  It is about jobs for all of us, whether those jobs are in chemistry or down the economic stream.

February 9, 2010 at 11:08 am | Innovation, Jobs, TSCA Reform | 46No commenthttp://blog.coalitionforchemsafety.com/2010/02/tsca-and-job-protection/TSCA+and+Job+Protection2010-02-09+16%3A08%3A44Joe+Householder You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.