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CALIFORNIA SENATE PASSES BILL TO REGULATE CHEMICAL FIRE RETARDANTS
In First Tests for Widely Used Chemicals, Levels in Some Species Double in Five Years
Direct link to article: http://www.ewg.org/reports/taintedcatch/release_20030717.php
SACRAMENTO, July 17 - AB 302, Assemblywoman Wilma Chan's bill to ban two forms of toxic fire retardants in California beginning in 2008, passed the California Senate this morning by a vote of 25 to 12.
AB 302 now goes back to the Assembly, which has already passed it, for concurrence, then to the governor. As we noted, the Davis administration has said it supports the bill. If the governor signs it as expected, California will become the first state in the nation to regulate PBDEs, brominated fire retardants that are building up rapidly in people, animals and the environment worldwide. The chemicals are used in hundreds of everyday items, including computers, TV sets, cars and furniture.
Last week, Environmental Working Group released results of the first-ever tests on San Francisco Bay fish for brominated fire retardants. The study found that levels of the chemicals in California halibut and striped bass, the two most commonly eaten fish from the Bay, had increased by a factor of two to three in the last five years.
Exposure to low doses of PBDEs can cause permanent neurological and developmental damage including deficits in learning, memory and hearing, changes in behavior, and delays in sensory-motor development. Most at risk are pregnant women, developing fetuses, infants and young children, and the 10 million Americans with hypothyroidism. Scientists say most Americans may already carry levels of PBDEs that cause serious nerve damage in lab animals.
“We don’t have to poison the Bay or our bodies for fire safety,” said Sonya Lunder, EWG analyst and principal author of the study. “Computers and other products can be made flame-resistant by using different materials or better design, instead of adding toxic chemicals that are a public health timebomb.”
The EWG report is available at www.ewg.org/reports/taintedcatch
Source: Environmental Working Group
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