EPA investigating formaldehyde emissions

Copyright © 2008
Gallup Independent
By Kathy Helms
Diné Bureau

WINDOW ROCK — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has launched an investigation into the potential health risks of formaldehyde use in pressed-wood products and is seeking public input. Pressed-wood products are used extensively in mobile homes.

Formaldehyde is commonly used as a preservative and is found in certain pressed-wood products. The chemical “gasses off” from wood products containing formaldehyde-based adhesives and then mixes with the indoor air. This process is more likely to occur in hot and humid environments.

Formaldehyde also adds permanent-press qualities to clothing and draperies and helps preserve some paints and coating products.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies formaldehyde as a known human carcinogen. Formaldehyde exposure, even at low levels, can trigger coughing, wheezing, and other respiratory ailments, while continuous exposure to the gas can trigger attacks in asthma sufferers.

Attention to the formaldehyde issue significantly increased after Hurricane Katrina when Federal Emergency Management Agency-issued travel trailers provided as housing for dislocated families in New Orleans allegedly caused illness in many people from formaldehyde emissions in pressed-wood used in their construction.

In 2007, U.S. Rep. Henry Waxman’s Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held a hearing to investigate reports of elevated levels of formaldehyde in FEMA-purchased trailers. Ninety-four percent were found to have indoor levels in excess of the standard considered safe by EPA.

EPA is asking interested parties to submit comments, information and data to determine the extent of the problem and what to do about it. In addition to a 60-day public comment period, the federal agency has scheduled five public meetings in Research Triangle Park, N.C., Portland, Ore., Chicago, Dallas and Washington, D.C., to obtain more input.
Through this process, EPA will develop a risk assessment on potential adverse-health effects and determine whether EPA action is needed to address any identified risks.

The call for comments follows a citizens’ petition received under the Toxic Substances Control Act in March 2008 from the Sierra Club, a number of other environmental organizations, as well as a large number of private citizens concerned about risks from exposure.

EPA submitted an advance notice of proposed rulemaking on Nov. 25 and will be taking comments for 60 days following publication in the Federal Register. Comments can be mailed to: Document Control Office (7407M), Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20460-0001.

Information: http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/chemtest/formaldehyde/index.htm