ChemFORWARD to Support Manufacturers’ Compliance with San Francisco Safe Chemistry Policy

The San Francisco Department of the Environment has expanded the flexibility and usefulness of its pragmatic policy governing flame retardant chemicals. The agency will now accept ChemFORWARD methodology alongside GreenScreen scores to provide transparency around the chemicals consumers may find in products they buy. This progress shows that government leadership can meaningfully protect human and environmental health.

ChemFORWARD  will contribute to hazard transparency and provide documentation of safer chemistry to support the San Francisco Flame Retardant Chemicals in Upholstered Furniture and Juvenile Products Ordinance.

San Francisco has crafted first-in-the-nation policies on toxics reduction, green building, Integrated Pest Management (IPM), healthy nail salons, and champions the precautionary principle – a decision-making framework that protects the public from exposure to harm, even in the face of scientific uncertainty. When substances or practices pose a threat to health and safety, the department offers suggestions on how to avoid them and use safer alternatives. The department’s recommendations are guided by the Precautionary Principle, Green Chemistry, and Extended Producer Responsibility.

The ordinance bans the sale of upholstered furniture and juvenile products made with flame retardants. While these chemicals are found in couches, upholstered chairs, cushions, and pillows, they have been found to do little, if anything, to slow or prevent fire. Research has found that many of these chemicals are harmful to health and can accumulate over time.

Since the implementation of the ordinance began in January 2019, several furniture and juvenile product manufacturers have petitioned for a waiver from strict compliance with the Ordinance, because they produce or sell covered products with electrical or electronic components. These electronic components are required to meet certain flammability standards, leading to the use of flame retardants in many of them.  The San Francisco Department of the Environment has issued these manufacturers a conditional waiver which requires them to disclose which flame retardants are used in the electrical or electronic components and to provide either a GreenScreen® benchmark score or a ChemFORWARD hazard band for those chemicals. This information will be useful in understanding the potential hazards posed by flame retardants used in electronic components and what safer alternatives exist.

 ChemFORWARD is a science-based, nonprofit collaboration of leading brands, retailers and NGOs working to empower the supply chain with high quality, actionable chemical hazard data. We believe that better data leads to better decisions that enable a safe, circular, and more equitable economy.