Green Chemistry Research and Development Act of 2008

Bill: 110-s-2669
Sponsor: Sen. Snowe, Olympia J. [R-ME]
Introduced: 2008-02-26 in the Senate
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Subjects: Chemical engineering
Chemical industries
Chemical research
Chemistry
Chemists
Citizen participation
Commerce
Commercialization
Communication in science
Conferences
Congress
Congressional reporting requirements
Cost control
Cost effectiveness
Curricula
Department of Commerce
Department of Energy
Economic research
Economics and Public Finance
Education
Energy
Energy efficiency
Engineers
Environmental Protection
Environmental Protection Agency
Executive reorganization
Federal aid to education
Federal aid to research
Finance and Financial Sector
Government Operations and Politics
Government paperwork
Governmental investigations
Graduate education
Green products
Hazardous wastes
Higher education
Industrial costs
Industrial engineering
Industrial pollution
Industry-university relations
Infrastructure
Law
Legal research
Manufacturing industries
National Science Foundation
Nonprofit organizations
Pollution control
Research and development
Research grants
Scientific education
Social Welfare
Social science research
Technology transfer
Waste reduction

Summary:
action_date: 2008-02-26
text: 
Green Chemistry Research and Development Act of 2008 - Directs the President to establish a Green Chemistry Research and Development Program to promote and coordinate federal research, development, education, and technology transfer activities related to green chemistry. Defines &quot;green chemistry&quot; as chemistry and chemical engineering to design chemical products and processes that reduce or eliminate the use or generation of hazardous substances while producing high quality products through safe and efficient manufacturing processes.

 Requires the President to establish an Interagency Working Group to oversee the planning, management, and coordination of the Program. 

 Amends the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act to provide for the Regional Centers for the Transfer of Manufacturing Technology to enhance productivity and technological performance in U.S. manufacturing through the enabling of supply chain manufacturers to continuously make improvements with the aim of reducing or eliminating the use or generation of hazardous substances. 

 Requires the Director of the National Science Foundation to carry out a program to award grants to institutions of higher education to support their efforts to revise their undergraduate curriculum in chemistry and chemical engineering to incorporate green chemistry concepts and strategies. 

Requires such Director to enter into an arrangement with the National Research Council to conduct a study of, and report on, the factors that constitute barriers to the successful commercial application of promising results from green chemistry research and development. 

Directs the agencies participating in the Program to carry out a joint, coordinated program to award grants to institutions of higher education to establish partnerships with companies in the chemical industry to retrain chemists and chemical engineers in the use of green chemistry concepts and strategies.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2008-02-26
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
action_date: 2008-02-26
text: Introduced in Senate