U.S. – The Environmental Protection Agency has determined that as of June 1, 2018, all imported and domestically-produced composite wood panels and products made with these panels must now be third-party certified as compliant with mandatory national formaldehyde emissions requirements under the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) TSCA Title VI.

The Composite Panel Association (CPA) provided the following statement in support of these important regulations. “CPA and its North American member companies have been staunch advocates for EPA to finalize and implement these regulations as soon as possible and to establish strong enforcement that ensures a level playing field for all manufacturers producing or using composite wood, whether made in the U.S. or imported.

The day marked a major milestone in this effort to ensure consumers benefit from what is widely considered the most stringent formaldehyde emissions regulation in the world today. This is a great outcome for consumers and should mark the beginning of a ‘new generation’ of safer wood products in the U.S.”

It should be remembered that recently the issue of formaldehyde emission from laminate flooring received a lot of media attention, alerting the general public as well as consumer protection organizations. The topic became mainstream as a result of an investigation carried out by renowned journalist Anderson Cooper regarding the harmful concentrations of formaldehyde in laminated floors from China and imported mainly by Lumber Liquidators, the largest distributor of laminate flooring on the west coast of the United States.