Canadian Expert Panel Warns About Nanomaterials

A little-known but authoritative and autonomous body, the Council of the Canadian Academies (Council), has issued a lengthy report (Report) regarding the possible risks of the widespread use of engineered nanomaterials. Entitled Small is Different: A Scientific Perspective on the Regulatory Challenges of the Nanoscale, the Report concludes that "there are inadequate data to inform quantitative risk assessments on current and emerging nanomaterials". While nanomaterials hold out great promise in many fields, including the delivery of therapeutic medicines to specific sites in the human body, it is still unknown, for example, whether the entry of nanomaterials into food chains and water supplies could have long range deleterious effects. The Report notes that the impact of nanomaterials on living organisms is not well understood and, until it is, it suggests that regulators should err on the side of caution when there may be reason to doubt the safety of new products. The dilemma posed for regulators, suggests the Report, is that nanomaterials did not exist when many regulatory schemes were devised. For example, in drafting existing regulations the possibility was not considered that the use of microscopic components of substances already regulated might, because of the rearrangement of the components, give rise to unexpected results. As stated by the Report, "Current regulatory triggers are not sufficient to identify all nanomaterials entering the market that may require regulatory oversight". It will be interesting to observe how the Report is received by government agencies and legislators and what support will emerge, both from within and outside government, for a formal legislative or regulatory response. For the full text of the 133-page Report, see: http://tinyurl.com/5tea4k For a news report, visit: http://tinyurl.com/6xbzvg Summary by: The Editor