Status and Future Directions of the - US Environmental Protection ...

Status and Future Directions
Appendix 6: Future Directions
and Developing Issues
EPA’s “High Production Volume Challenge
Program” website is found at http://www.
epa.gov/chemrtk/volchall.htm. Test plan and
robust summary submissions, sponsor commitment
information, chemical lists, guidance documents,
and other materials can be found at this site. EPA
has recently provided limited search capability on its
existing “Robust Summaries and Test Plans” webpage
(http://www.epa.gov/chemrtk/hpvrstp.htm) that allows
stakeholders to search more efficiently for test plans
and robust summaries. The search feature allows users
to locate specific test plans by CAS number, chemical
name, sponsor (individual company or consortium), or
individual/category test plan name. The search then
links users to the appropriate submission materials.
Various stakeholder volunteers were used to test the
newly developed search component of the website,
including members of the NPPTAC’s (National
Pollution Prevention and Toxics Advisory Committee
– see “Developing Issues” below) HPV Work Group,
a group specifically charged with considering HPV
issues, as well as the Forum on State and Tribal
Toxics Action (FOSTTA) Chemical Information and
Management Project (CIMP) members. Comments
were received from the testers, and a production release
of this function occurred in April 2004.
A much more comprehensive, data-searchable
application with a website front-end is the ultimate
goal of the HPV Information System (HPVIS). This
system will allow users to thoroughly search across
all test plan and robust summary-related materials
– including data presented within and among robust
summaries. Among other features, the system will
ultimately allow the user to locate specific endpoint
data, and it will recognize certain sponsor-provided
chemical synonym names in addition to the officially
recognized chemical name. The immediate need is to
develop enough functionality to populate the HPVIS
with data and develop limited querying tools to enable
the public to access these data. See the following table
for the Projected HPVIS 2004 development timeline.
The development process has begun defining the
screen flow and designing system screens. The initial
focus involves populating the database with historical
submissions that were provided in support of the
HPV Challenge Program. EPA will be working with
sponsors and trade associations on the process of
entering and validating legacy data as well as newly
submitted test plan and robust summary data. The
initial public release of the database is scheduled
toward late 2004 / early 2005.
Availability of screening-level hazard data on HPV
chemicals is a global issue. There are many activities
addressing this issue worldwide. Coordination and
compatibility of various international HPV data
systems are essential. EPA is collaboratively working
with the European Commission (EC), in consultation
with the Organization for Economic Cooperation
and Development (OECD), and with the additional
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