Nanotechnology – What's So Big about the Small Stuff?

Nanotechnology – What's So Big about the Small Stuff?

•          Nanotechnology is “the Next Big Thing.” It is a truly international phenomenon that “will have a major impact on the health, wealth and security of the world's people that will be at least as significant in this century as antibiotics, the integrated circuit, and manmade polymers.” [1]

•          The market for nanotechnology-based products is expected to reach $2.5 trillion by 2015, up from $147 billion in 2007.[2]

Nanotechnology presents the promise of a diverse array of manufactured goods and products that incorporate improved and innovative properties. Studies have determined that, due to their unique properties, nanomaterials (NM) have unpredictable properties in biological systems and that the health implications from NM exposures are not yet known.  Although numerous products incorporating nanotechnology are here today, specific regulatory drivers for NM are still emerging.  Companies producing or using NM must address the potential hazards of NM in the workplace to comply with existing workplace standards under the Occupational Health and Safety Act.  For example, the General Duty Clause requires that employers provide each employee a place of employment that is free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm and the Hazard Communication Standard (29 CFR 1900.1200) provides workers with the right to know the hazards that they are exposed to in the workplace.  Uncertainty about adverse health effects from exposures to NM and which work practices to adopt today should not impede efforts by companies to develop worker safety programs that minimize potential health effects.  Such an approach can reduce the likelihood of worker exposures to NM and the financial costs of subsequent liability claims and litigation.

This presentation will provide an overview of nanotechnology basics, an inventory of potentially applicable regulations and guidelines and the benefits of a proactive approach.

---

[1] National Science and Technology Council Committee on Technology

[2] Lux Populi Newsletter, February 22, 2010, Lux Research

Contact Information:

William C. Looney

Senior Program Manager

Director AECOM Nanotechnology Initiative

AECOM Environment

D 414.577.1362   C 262.893.0658

bill.looney@aecom.com

AECOM

11425 W. Lake Park Drive, Suite 100

Milwaukee, WI 53224

T 414.359.3030 F 414.359.0822

www.aecom.com