Dr. Peter Stonebraker Joins Locus to Lead European Union REACH Program Consulting

SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Marketwire - July 23, 2007) - Locus Technologies (Locus), the industry leader in Web-based environmental data and information management services, announced today that Dr. Peter Stonebraker joined the company to help Locus's existing, and future, customers deal with compliance with global chemical control legislation, including new European Union (EU) Registration, Evaluation, and Authorization of Chemicals (REACH) regulation. REACH is the new chemical control regulation (2006/1907 adopted by the European Parliament on 18 December 2006) that covers production and use of new and existing chemical substances. It is the strictest law to date, regulating industrial chemicals, and will impact industries throughout the world.

Dr. Stonebraker retired from Chevron Corporation, where, most recently, he was Manager of Product Stewardship and HES. He managed all aspects of compliance for global chemical control, including the REACH program, and hazard communication legislation, for all downstream Chevron Corporation businesses. He was also Chair of the Lubricant Additive Alkyl Phenol Panel (LAAPP), an industry organization within the American Chemistry Council (ACC). LAAPP's purpose is to allow continued use of specific alkyl phenol intermediates targeted by the EU UK Competent Authority, which are used in the lubricant additive business. Dr. Stonebraker managed all aspects of Chevron Oronite's toxicology testing requirements for the global registrations of new chemicals and also the toxicology testing that has been required more recently for existing chemical regulations, such as REACH. He also managed Chevron Oronite's compliance to ISO 9001 and 14001 requirements.

Dr Stonebraker is a world-known petroleum and Industrial organic chemistry expert. He has published extensively in this area, as well as written articles on the toxicology of petroleum additives and chemical control regulations. He was also member of the Chevron Corporation CORE HES leadership team that provided overall direction on the HES program for Chevron Corporation, and a member of the Focus Research Team that provided corporate governance on Chevron's corporate R&D budget. He was a member of the team that developed Chevron Corporation's process guidance document for Product Stewardship and was the decision executive for the adoption of ProSteward™, Chevron's corporate Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) authoring software.

Dr. Stonebraker holds a Doctor of Philosophy degree in organic chemistry from the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington; and a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from Whitworth College in Spokane, Washington.

Since it came into force in June 2007, REACH requires all chemicals manufactured or imported annually at greater than one tonne or more into the EU to be tested for human health and environmental safety effects and registered with a new central European authority -- the European Chemicals Agency located in Helsinki, Finland. REACH requires manufacturers and importers of such chemicals to pre-register them during the 6-month pre-registration period -- 1 June 2008 to 1 December 2008. Then, in a stage manner based on tonnage, all non-exempt chemicals must be registered. Companies will need to provide a risk assessment detailing all known or proposed toxicology and exposure information during the registration time frames.

"We have worked with Dr. Stonebraker since 2003, dealing with US EPA's high protection volume (HPV) and the EU's Existing Chemicals programs for the ACC. We were very impressed with Dr. Stonebraker's leadership of the ACC panel and his knowledge and expertise of Alkyl Phenol chemicals and REACH's impact on the oil and gas industry. With our dual expertise in environmental information management software and high-end strategic consulting, Locus is perfectly positioned to help industries, oil and gas in particular, deal with REACH. Dr. Stonebraker has experience and expertise unmatched in the world to lead the effort for Locus and its customers," said Dr. Neno Duplancic, President and CEO of Locus.

REACH also applies to all chemicals considered to be of very high concern to human health or the environment -- regardless of volume. Depending on the substance in question and its use, producers and importers may be obliged to investigate its effects on human health and the environment. The most hazardous chemicals -- CAT 1 or 2 carcinogens, reproductive toxins, or mutagens, as well as those that are persistent in the environment and accumulate in humans or animals -- can only be used if authorized by the European Chemicals Agency. REACH applies to all chemicals imported or produced in the EU, in contrast to the US Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), which only applies to chemicals newly coming into use.

Without an appropriate IT tool, it would be extremely difficult for industry, especially for small and medium enterprises, to comply with the REACH data requirements. To structure these requirements, REACH requires a specific reporting format, namely the IUCLID format. Consequently, Locus intends to support REACH-affected businesses by extending its award-winning on-demand software platform, LocusFocus, that many companies already use for reporting chemicals affecting air, water, and soil at their environmentally impacted sites. LocusFocus will assist chemical companies globally in fulfilling their obligation to submit data to the European Chemicals Agency under the REACH legislation from 1 June 2008.

ABOUT LOCUS TECHNOLOGIES

Locus Technologies specializes in providing comprehensive environmental data and information management and consulting services for the environmental industry. Locus's primary line of business is the integration of environmental content and domain expertise with Software as a Service (SaaS) offerings. Its flagship product, EIM, provides robust online analytical data management for Locus customers around the world.

Contact Information: Media Contact: Heidi Thaw Locus Technologies (650) 960-1640