The American Chemical Society (ACS) via its Green Chemistry Institute and NSF International, a public health and safety organization, are aiming to develop a green chemistry standard, which focuses on chemical characteristics, process safety, energy efficiency and recyclability.
The groups aim to develop a standard that will provide criteria for what would constitute a green chemical and green chemistry, along with a system to measure various levels of achievement. This is expected to be a non-regulatory approach towards promoting greener industry practices.
A broad group of stakeholders has been convened to provide expertise, review documents and vote on relevant issues. Recognised procedures from American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and NSF International are being utilised.
SOCMA is represented in the stakeholder group and is monitoring developments. At this stage it is unclear as to what will come out of this standard and the time it will take to fulfill its goals.