June 30, 1999

AN OPEN LETTER TO USERS OF ALKYLPHENOLS AND ALKYLPHENOL ETHOXYLATES:

The APE Research Council would like you to be aware of two Canadian regulatory activities regarding nonylphenol (NP) and nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPE). The Council and its members are working with appropriate regulators to make sure they are aware of the research on the environmental safety of these products.

Environment Canada and Health Canada, in their routine review of various chemical substances, are assessing the environmental and health related characteristics of NP and NPE. Canadian and U.S. producers of these products, and representatives of the APE Research Council, have met with the officials responsible for this assessment to answer their questions and have shared available data on these substances. The APE Research Council will review the health and environmental assessments that the Canadian agencies plan to release for public comment at the end of this year.

Of more immediate concern is a Sewer Use By-Law recently approved in draft by the Toronto City Council. This By-Law could have a significant impact on many companies in the Toronto area as well as affect other Canadian jurisdictions. The revisions would limit discharges of 29 organic substances (including NP and NPE) to the municipal sewage system. If adopted, the By-Law could severely restrict the commercial use of many of these substances. The Toronto City Council has just completed a series of "consultations" on the proposal with various industry sectors and requests written comments by July 13.

As you may know, a few activist groups are discouraging the use of NPEs. In addition, members of the media have repeated inaccurate statements regarding the environmental safety of NP and NPEs and have mischaracterized the assessment process described above. We anticipate that these regulatory activities could receive additional media coverage, including attention on NP and NPEs.

We want you to know that the resources of the APE Research Council are available to you. The APE Research Council and its members have spent considerable time and energy over the past decade reviewing the safety of NP and NPEs. We have gathered data and conducted studies on environmental fate, effects and occurrence of these substances, as well as on potential health effects.

We actively encourage you and your members to utilize these resources by contacting the APE Research Council by phone, fax or e-mail. Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with the materials on our web site regarding the safety of these substances, including the "Safety of APs/APEs," "The Endocrine Issue" and our white paper, "Alkylphenols and Alkylphenol Ethoxylates: An Overview of Safety Issues."

In the meantime, we will continue to provide information to Health Canada and Environment Canada, as well as to Toronto officials.

We hope you find this information helpful. Once again, please let us know how the Research Council may help.

Robert J. Fensterheim
Executive Director