SAFE CARE® Cleaners, Solvents & Specialty Products
Certified USEPA Vessel General Permit (VGP) Compliant
GEMTEK® Products LLC, a manufacturer of biobased cleaners, solvents and specialty chemicals, is pleased to announce that its SAFE CARE® products meet the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Vessel General Permit (VGP) requirements for above water line hull cleaning or deck wash-downs resulting in discharge. Effective December 2013, the VGP also requires that cleaners and detergents be non-caustic, biodegradable, “minimally-toxic” and “phosphate free”. SAFE CARE® products are tested by third-party laboratories to be non-toxic and readily biodegradable, making them safe for people and the environment. Therefore, GEMTEK® Products certifies that its SAFE CARE® cleaners, solvents and specialty products are VGP Compliant.
More about SAFE CARE Cleaners, Solvents & Specialty
SAFE CARE® products are formulated from renewable, plant-based ingredients that are safe for people and the environment. With a wide range of applications for the maritime industry, these high-performance products are based on colloidal micelle nanotechnologies that are safe to use, store and dispose of. Unlike caustic cleaners and detergent, SAFE CARE® products will not damage surfaces, finishes, or parts thereby improving life-cycle maintenance related costs. Several SAFE CARE® products are participants in the US EPA Design for the Environment (DfE) program and USDA BioPreferred program. Our most powerful surfactant system, SC-1000 is listed as a Surface Washing Agent by the US EPA National Oil & Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency (NCP) and is certified by the Centre for Environmental Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) for use in the North Sea with a Gold rating.
More about the US EPA Vessel General Permit
The US EPA, on March 28, 2013, signed the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Vessel General Permit. The VGP reissued in March 2013 supersedes the 2008 VGP, which will continue to regulate discharges incidental to the normal operation of commercial vessels over 79 feet in length including tankers, freighters, barges, cruise ships, passenger vessels and commercial fishing vessels. The VGP regulates 26 specific discharge categories including non-native aquatic nuisance species, nutrients, pathogens, oil and grease, metals, and toxic chemical compounds that are harmful to aquatic species and effect human health.
For more information: http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/vessels/vgpermit.cfm