UK study on nanometerials has concluded with a warning about the dangers posed by the new materials and recommendations for industries using them (BBC News - Action urged over nanomaterials): Urgent regulatory action is needed on nano-scale materials widely used in industry, the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution has concluded. The materials have so far shown no evidence of harm to people or the environment, the commission found. However, it said there was a "major gap" in research about the risks posed by the materials, which are found in some 600 products globally. [...] The commission added that it saw no reason to implement a blanket ban or moratorium on the development and implementation of nanomaterials, because of the societal benefits they represented, for example, to medicine and the renewable energy industry. Instead, it urged co-operative, international action to establish tests for their dangers and regulatory oversight. They also suggested changing the industrial reporting of the use of nanomaterials from voluntary to mandatory, with an industry "checklist" to flag up the products that posed the highest potential risk. Join discussion...