The Weekly Toxic Times

From the Michigan Network for Children's Environmental Health

News highlights from April 5 - April 11, 2008

A recap of the top stories on toxins in Michigan, National, and International news.

Michigan News

How much will Dow pay?

Midland Daily News, Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Article discusses a draft plan assessing the damages Dow Chemical caused to the Saginaw Valley area. The report can be found at: http://www.fws.gov/midwest/TittabawasseeRiverNRDA/index.html.

http://www.ourmidland.com/articles/2008/04/09/local_news/1047986.txt

Critics: Politics is hiding CDC report detailing deadly effects of pollution

Grand Rapids Press, Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Article discusses allegations by Democratic congressmen [Representatives Dingell and Stupak] that a CDC report titled “Public Health Implications of Hazardous Substances in the 26 U.S. Great Lakes Areas of Concern” is being withheld from public release because of politics.

http://blog.mlive.com/grpress/2008/04/critics_politics_is_hiding_cdc.html

State official says certain Saginaw Bay species contain dangerous levels of pollutants

Bay City Times, Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Article discusses warnings of Kory Groetsch of the Michigan Department of Community Health that fish from Saginaw River and Bay are badly contaminated with dioxins and PCBs.

http://www.mlive.com/news/bctimes/index.ssf?/base/news-11/120775411044
000.xml&coll=4

Tannery site cleanup needs DEQ approval

Muskegon Chronicle, Monday, April 7, 2008

“WHITEHALL – The development team and city officials are hopeful that a formal draft of an environmental cleanup plan for the former Whitehall Leather Co. tannery site will be submitted by summer's end….”

http://www.mlive.com/news/chronicle/index.ssf?/base/news-14/1207581326
56030.xml&coll=8

Ridding your home of lead paint is doable – so do it

Detroit News, Saturday, April 5, 2008

The Handyman column of the Detroit News covers how to remove lead paint from your home.

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080405/OPINION03/80
4050392

National News

Mattress eco-Matters: Don’t take it lying down

Washington Post, Sunday, April 6, 2008

Article discusses chemicals in mattresses as well as how people can get exposed to them while sleeping.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/03/AR200
8040303081.html

Spending time in vehicles can increase PBDE exposure

Environmental Science and Technology, Wednesday, March 26, 2008

“The air inside automobiles can have very high concentrations of PBDE flame retardants, according to new research in ES&T (DOI: 10.1021/es7030533. The study documents that some cars manufactured as recently as January 2006 contain compounds, or congeners, associated with the lighter-weight Penta-BDE and Octa-BDE formulations, which have been banned from use in Europe since 2004…”

http://pubs.acs.org/subscribe/journals/esthag-w/2008/mar/science/kb_pbdes
cars.html

Industry backs ‘sensible’ new global standard

Reuters, Wednesday, April 9, 2008

“Top toymakers backed plans on Wednesday for a mandatory global safety standard for toys to prevent unsafe products from reaching the consumer, but said it must not be a barrier to innovation or entry into the market….”

http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSL09905396

Europe follows WA on ban on flame retardants

Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Thursday, April 4, 2008

“The European Union will implement a ban on a toxic flame retardant in electronic products beginning on July 1. The ban applies to the widely produced and used deca-brominated diphenyl ether, a member of the PBDE family of chemicals…”

http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/environment/archives/135825.asp

New Jersey lawmaker wants to ban chemicals from children’s toys

Philly.com, Tuesday, April 8, 2008

“TRENTON, N.J. – New Jersey would become the third state in the nation to ban toys and children's products containing chemicals linked to hormonal diseases, under a bill awaiting action in the Legislature. The Toxic-Free Children's Products Act would ban the sale, distribution and manufacture of products containing bisphenol-A (BPA), found in baby bottles and kids' toys, or phthalates (pronounced thA-lAtes), found in many household goods…”

http://www.philly.com/philly/wires/ap/news/state/new_jersey/20080408_ap_
newjerseylawmakerwantstobanchemicalsfromchildrenstoys.html

Group finds phthalates in children’s products

WMTM (Maine), Tuesday, April 8, 2008

“PORTLAND, Maine – The Alliance for a Clean and Healthy Maine has found high levels of chemicals that can cause health problems in children's toys and products. The alliance said 20 of the 24 products purchased at Target, the Dollar Tree, and Toys R Us tested positive for the chemical phthalate, which is used to soften plastics….”

http://www.wmtw.com/news/15822869/detail.html

Parkersburg-area residents record high levels of C8, a DuPont chemical, in blood

Charleston Gazette, Saturday, April 5, 2008

“Tens of thousands of Mid-Ohio Valley residents have elevated levels of the toxic chemical C8 in their blood, a landmark new health study has confirmed. Residents of communities around DuPont Co.'s Parkersburg plant have more than five times more C8 in their blood than the average American, according to the first official study data, made public this week…”

http://sundaygazettemail.com/News/200804050030

Teflon toxin found in W. Va. Residents

Delaware Online, Sunday, April 6, 2008

“Thousands of residents who live near a DuPont Co. plant in Parkersburg, W. Va., have elevated levels of a chemical used to make the nonstick coating Teflon, according to early results from a massive screening. The chemical is the same one detected in groundwater near the DuPont's sprawling Chambers Works in Deepwater, N.J., and around at least one other DuPont site in New Jersey…”

http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080406/NEWS08
/804060354

EPA sued over pesticides

Central Valley Business Times, Tuesday, April 7, 2008

“The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is being sued to stop the continued use of four organophosphate pesticides commonly used in California on a wide variety of fruit, vegetable, and nut crops. The four pesticides at issue are methidathion, oxydemeton-methyl, methamidophos, and ethoprop…”

http://www.centralvalleybusinesstimes.com/stories/001/?ID=8361

Hermaphrodite frogs found in suburban ponds

New York Times, April 8, 2008

Article discusses a study that found that frogs in suburban areas are more likely to develop reproductive abnormalities than frogs in rural areas.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/08/science/08frog.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Atrazine effects in Xenopus not reproducible

Environmental Science and Technology, April 9, 2008

Article provides extensive coverage of recent research studies examining whether the herbicide atrazine affects the reproductive development of frogs.

http://pubs.acs.org/subscribe/journals/esthag-w/2008/apr/science/rr_atrazine
.html

Tighter lead-products limits advance

Baltimore Sun, Saturday, April 5, 2008

“The Senate voted yesterday to strengthen pending restrictions on products that contain lead, matching a bill that has passed the House of Delegates…”

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/politics/bal-md.lead05apr05,0,10786
93.story

PCBs found at two more city schools

New York Daily, Wednesday, April 9, 2008

“The city has found PCBs in the soil of two public schools that exceeds federally acceptable levels, new data show…”

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/education/2008/04/09/2008-04-09_pcbs
_found_at_two_more_city_schools.html

Department of Health says PCB levels normal in city schools

NY1, Monday, April 7, 2008

“The Department of Health says there is no need to worry about PCBs posing a health risk to children in city schools. This comes in response to an article in the Daily News which reported that PCB levels found in six city schools were above federal regulations…”

http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=4&aid=80256

North Dakota gravel sparks fears

Washington Post, Saturday, April 5, 2008

Article discusses EPA’s action to stop North Dakota’s prevalent use of a non-regulated mineral called erionite as gravel. Article indicates that EPA wants to study the human health effects of erionite.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/05/AR200
8040500639.html

A new focus on plastic ingredient in bottles and cans

Consumer Reports, May 2008

Consumer Reports article on Bisphenol A.

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/consumer-protection/recalls-and-safety-
alerts-5-08/plastic-ingredients-in-bottles-and-cans/recalls-plastic.htm?result
PageIndex=1&resultIndex=1&searchTerm=bisphenol%20a

International News

Cutting corners on consumer safety will be costly

Globe (Canada), Tuesday, April 8, 2008

“OTTAWA — A major overhaul of consumer protection laws announced yesterday will introduce fines for people who put unsafe goods on store shelves and allow the government to recall products that are deemed hazardous. Prime Minister Stephen Harper and two of his cabinet ministers rolled out a new Consumer Product Safety Act and promised an update to the federal Food and Drugs Act - the first in 50 years - at a news conference yesterday afternoon….”

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080409.wsafety09/BN
Story/National/home

Lead levels in children’s jewelry match those in car batteries: Health Canada

Canada.com, Monday, April 7, 2008

“OTTAWA – Six out of 10 children's jewelry items for sale in Canada tested at the government's product safety laboratory in the last two years had dangerous and illegal levels of lead - some with levels comparable to car batteries made of almost pure lead…”

http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=5c0f67cd-25eb-4602-bd31-
c6f18f44374a&k=43026

Food additives “could be as damaging as lead in petrol”

The Independent (Canada), Saturday, April 5, 2008

“Artificial food colours are set to be removed from hundreds of products after a team of university researchers warned they were doing as much damage to children's brains as lead in petrol…”

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-wellbeing/health-news/
food-additives-could-be-as-damaging-as-lead-in-petrol-804890.html

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Articles were researched and compiled by Diane Sherman, MNCEH Intern.

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