Environment Canada to assess risk of new chemicals

Agency will publish summaries of risk assessments for new chemical substances

New chemicals may pose health and safety risks to consumers.

Environment Canada this fall will begin publishing summaries of risk assessments it conducts on certain chemical substances when they are first proposed for domestic use.

The initiative by the department's New Substances Program has the support of industry and nongovernmental organizations, but industry remains concerned about the potential release of confidential business information while NGOs have ongoing concerns about whether enough information will be released.

The publication of risk assessment summaries is part of an effort to improve the transparency of the department's review process for new chemicals.

It was supposed to start in late 2012 but was delayed to take into account issues raised in a 2012 pilot project, the department told BNA in an emailed statement. The summaries are to be published every six months.

The government has previously not made public any details of its risk assessments of new substances. It has issued notices requiring notification of significant new activity or imposing conditions on the use of new substances, but without identifying them as new substances or indicating on what basis the requirements were being applied.

Government to provide details

The 2012 pilot project conducted by Environment Canada and Health Canada under the New Substances Program published summaries of risk assessments of three new chemicals: carbopolycyclic diol polymer with carbonic dichloride and substituted phenol ester; alkoxy-alkylamine blocked aromatic isocyanate polymer; and poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), alpha-monoalkyl ethers- omega-mono-(hydrogen maleate).

The substances had risk assessments completed, final notification of results provided to industry, and requirements for notification to the government of significant new activities published in the Canada Gazette between August and December 2010, Environment Canada said in a background document.

The summaries provide an overview of each substance, its use, hazards, potential exposure, environmental fate, assessment of ecological risk and human health risk, and proposed regulatory decisions, the department said. The evaluations do not address potential exposure and health risks specifically associated with occupational exposure, nor any assessment of uses of the substance already addressed under the Food and Drugs Act or other federal legislation, the department said.

The Canadian government has been assessing new chemicals since 1994, requiring industry to provide the information needed to determine the risk the substances pose to the environment and human health.

The Environment Canada background document, including links to the three sample risk assessment summaries published in 2012, is available at http://bit.ly/145r5A9.

This article has been edited. Source: Bloomberg BNA

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EPA pays companies to test more chemicals for toxicity

Authorities are concerned about the
effects of chemicals on human health.

Thousands of new chemicals are developed every week, but concerns are mounting that chemical exposure can lead to a range of sensitivities and diseases.

In many countries, environmental watchdogs have been pressing companies and governments to keep testing chemicals for their impact on human health and to make sure that harmful chemicals will be phased out.

Just last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ToxCast chemical screening program has awarded contracts to four United States-based companies to test up to 10,000 chemicals for potential toxicity to people and the environment.

ToxCast is designed to determine how chemical exposures affect human health. 

When fully implemented, ToxCast will be able to screen thousands of chemicals in fast, cost-effective tests.

The four companies will initially screen up to 1,000 chemicals currently in the ToxCast program using innovative technologies such as stem cell toxicity tests.

These new technologies can quickly determine the potential for a chemical to cause harm to the human body.

Screening results from the new technologies will be combined with data already being generated by the other 500 rapid chemical tests used by EPA’s ToxCast program.

The chemicals ToxCast is now screening are found in industrial and consumer products, food additives and drugs.

ToxCast’s goal is to reduce EPA’s reliance on slow and expensive animal toxicity tests, enabling the agency to screen chemicals more quickly and to predict and identify potential risks to Americans.

EPA scientific studies using ToxCast have already been published in peer-reviewed science journals, and demonstrate the ability of ToxCast to predict a chemical’s potential to cause several diseases.

The four companies awarded the contracts have offices throughout the country and plan to hire new scientific staff to help with the project.

The companies are Vala Sciences, Cee Tox, CellzDirect and BioReliance. Two of the companies, Vala Sciences and BioReliance are small businesses based in San Diego, Calif. and Kalamazoo, Mich.

All four companies plan to hire new employees as a result of these contracts.

More information on ToxCast:  http://epa.gov/ncct/toxcast/
More information on ToxCast database:  http://actor.epa.gov/actor/faces/ToxCastDB/Home.jsp

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Formaldehyde, other substances added to list of cancer-causing agents

The list of cancer-causing chemicals is growing.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has added eight substances to its Report on Carcinogens, a science-based document that identifies chemicals and biological agents that may put people at increased risk for cancer, a press release announced last week.

The industrial chemical formaldehyde and a botanical known as aristolochic acids are listed as known human carcinogens.

The Report on Carcinogens also lists six other substances – captafol, cobalt-tungsten carbide (in powder or hard metal form), certain inhalable glass wool fibers, o-nitrotoluene, riddelliine, and styrene – as substances that are reasonably anticipated to be human carcinogens.

With these additions, the 12th Report on Carcinogens now includes 240 listings.

"Reducing exposure to cancer-causing agents is something we all want, and the Report on Carcinogens provides important information on substances that pose a cancer risk," said Linda Birnbaum, Ph.D., director of both the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) and the National Toxicology Program (NTP). "The NTP is pleased to be able to compile this report."

John Bucher, Ph.D., associate director of the NTP added, "This report underscores the critical connection between our nation's health and what's in our environment."

A listing in the Report on Carcinogens does not by itself mean that a substance will cause cancer. Many factors, including the amount and duration of exposure, and an individual's susceptibility to a substance, affect whether a person will develop cancer.

More about airborne substances that may cause cancer

Formaldehyde is one of the more common indoor air pollutants because it is used in many construction and renovation materials, including plywood, carpeting, paints, glues, textiles, woodworking and cabinet-making.
Other sources include bath products, hair straightening treatments, cosmetics and personal care products. It is often found in paper product coatings and used as a preserving agent in labs and embalming, among others.
Formaldehyde can have toxic, allergenic and carcinogenic effects.

Cobalt-tungsten carbide (in powder and hard metal form) showed limited evidence of lung cancer in workers involved in cobalt-tungsten carbide hard metal manufacturing. Cobalt-tungsten carbide is used to make cutting and grinding tools, dies, and wear-resistant products for a broad spectrum of industries, including oil and gas drilling, as well as mining. In the United States, cobalt-tungsten hard metals are commonly referred to as cemented or sintered carbides.

Certain inhalable glass wool fibers made the list based on experimental animal studies. Not all glass wool or man-made fibers were found to be carcinogenic. The specific glass wool fibers referred to in this report have been redefined from previous reports on carcinogens to include only those fibers that can enter the respiratory tract, are highly durable, and are biopersistent, meaning they remain in the lungs for long periods of time.

o-Nitrotoluene is used as an intermediate in the preparation of azo dyes and other dyes, including magenta and various sulfur dyes for cotton, wool, silk, leather, and paper. It is also used in preparing agricultural chemicals, rubber chemicals, pesticides, petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, and explosives. Workers are likely exposed to o-nitrotoluene through the skin or from breathing it during production and use. o-Nitrotoluene has also been detected in air and water near facilities that produce munitions, and near military training facilities.

Styrene is on the list based on human cancer studies, laboratory animal studies, and mechanistic scientific information. Styrene is a synthetic chemical used worldwide in the manufacture of products such as rubber, plastic, insulation, fiberglass, pipes, automobile parts, food containers, and carpet backing. People may be exposed to styrene by breathing indoor air that has styrene vapors from building materials, tobacco smoke, and other products. The greatest exposure to styrene in the general population is through cigarette smoking. Workers in certain occupations may potentially be exposed to much higher levels of styrene than the general population.

Source: National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences


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Chemicals need to be tested more, say scientists

Thousands of chemicals are being registered
with the American Chemical Society each day.

Eight societies from the fields of genetics, reproductive medicine, endocrinology, developmental biology and others have written a letter in the journal Science to say that some 12,000 new chemicals are registered with the American Chemical Society daily.

While only a fraction of them make it into the environment, the US Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) still don’t have all the pertinent information about the types of chemicals that are produced in large quantities.

According to the Health and Medicine News article, the letter states, "The need for swifter and sounder testing and review procedures cannot be overstated.”

The scientists urge the top two federal regulators to evaluate more than the toxicity of chemicals with the help of a variety of experts, who can help interpret available data to determine how the chemicals are affecting humans. They suggest enlisting the help of geneticists, developmental and reproductive biologists and clinicians.


Chemical testing lags behind

"As things stand now," the article quotes Patricia Hunt, a professor in the Washington State University School of Molecular Biosciences and corresponding author of the letter, "things get rapidly into the marketplace and the testing of them is tending to lag behind."

The scientists are especially concerned about chemicals like the plasticizer bisphenol A (BPA) and others that mimic the effects of hormones.

"Hormones control everything -- our basic metabolism, our reproduction," she said. "We call them endocrine disruptors. They're like endocrine bombs to a certain extent because they can disrupt all these normal functions."

Because of growing health concerns, BPA has been widely outlawed in children’s food containers, bottles and drinking cups, but they are still exposed to a wide variety of chemicals in products, water and air.

Source: http://www.healthmagdaily.com/risks-of-chemical-exposure-scientists-call-for-swifter-and-sounder-testing-of-chemicals.html

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Robot system to test chemicals for toxicity

High-speed robot system to screen 10,000 chemicals.
Courtesy of National Human Genome Research Institute

Four federal American agencies have joined forces to use a new robot system to improve the way chemicals are tested in the country.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences National Toxicology Program, the National Institutes of Health Chemical Genomics Center (NCGC), and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have presented a new high-speed robot screening system that will test 10,000 chemicals for toxicity.

The collaboration, known under the name Tox21, merges the agencies’ resources, including research, funding and testing tools, to find better methods of testing the thousands of chemicals that people are exposed to every day.


System will help assess effects of chemicals on humans

“Understanding the molecular basis of hazard is fundamental to the protection of people’s health and the environment,” said Dr. Paul Anastas, assistant administrator of EPA’s Office of Research and Development, in the EPA press release. “Tox21 allows us to obtain deeper understanding and more powerful insights, faster than ever before.”

Too many chemicals have not yet been tested
for their effects on human health.

The robot system will test chemicals that are being used in industrial and consumer products, food additives and drugs. The results will help scientists in the evaluation of these chemicals to determine if they can lead to adverse health effects.


Proven screening system

According to the press release, Tox21 has already screened more than 2,500 chemicals for potential toxicity using robots and other innovative chemical screening technologies. The Tox21 chemical screening technologies were used to screen the different types of oil spill dispersants for potential endocrine activity during the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico last year.

A video of the Tox21 robot is available.


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Chinese drywall still a health hazard

Chinese drywall emits sulfur gases.

Harmful Chinese-made drywall that was widely used in homes and office buildings in North America between 2001 and 2007 could have serious side effects.

Most of the drywall was used in the southern US after damaging hurricanes, when US-made drywall was hard to come by.

Tests have shown that the Chinese-made building material emits sulfur gases, which cause a rotten egg smell and have a corrosive effect on electrical and plumbing components in the buildings.


Sulfur gas emissions linked to health problems

Health concerns include upper respiratory issues, such as coughing, sneezing, bloody noses, sleep apnea and sore throats.

According to the article, it is not known which materials in the Chinese drywall are triggering the release of sulfur gases. Some experts also question whether the Chinese drywall is, in fact, a health hazard.

However, highly toxic compounds have been found in Chinese drywall and prolonged exposure affect the central nervous system, cardiovascular system, eyes, kidneys, liver, and skin. Infants, children and the elderly may be especially vulnerable to the gases and the particles that are released from the drywall.


What to do if you suspect Chinese drywall in your building

1. Remove an outlet cover from the wall (make sure you turn off the power at the breaker panel) and check the bare, neutral ground wire for signs of corrosion. If it is black there could be a problem.
   
2. Inspect the mirrors in the building. Chinese drywall often causes darkened spots in the corners or the middle of the mirror.
   
3. Inspect the copper or the air conditioning system’s air handler. If the coil is copper-colored, green, dark red, or rusty, it is OK. If the copper coil is black, this could indicate a problem.
   
4. Inspect other metals in the home for blackening.
   
5. Check the back of drywall. Affected drywall may read “Made in China” on the back. The coloring when crumbled may be gray, rather than bright white.

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Source: http://lubbockonline.com/2011-02-25/chinese-drywall-could-pose-health-risks

Navy to tackle TCE vapor intrusion at Moffett Field

The news about vapor intrusion concerns in North America keep on coming. Workers in the buildings at Moffet Field in Mountain View, California, may soon be able to breathe easier, after the U.S. Navy agreed to clean up the toxic vapors that pollute their indoor air.

This announcement in the Mountain View Voice article comes after a long dispute between the Navy and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). EPA tested the indoor air quality at the Moffet Field Museum “several times since 2008 and indoor air concentrations have exceeded EPA indoor air cleanup levels," according to EPA records.

The problem is a big underground plume of TCE, an industrial solvent that contaminated the soil and groundwater at Moffett years ago.


Navy accepts responsibility for toxic vapor cleanup

Under the agreement, the Navy may have to install ventilation systems or other mitigation measures, which can cost as much as $200,000 for a 20,000-square-foot building. But first it needs to find out the extent of the soil vapor intrusion. More than 30 occupied buildings at Moffett have not been tested since 2003.

Moffett Field used to be a base airport for the U.S. Navy and is now a joint military-civil airfield with moderate air traffic used by California Air National Guard, NASA,and others.


TCE a health risk

An air purifier with activated carbon
can remove airborne chemicals and odors.

TCE (or TRICHLOROETHYLENE) is a recognized carcinogen, and suspected additional health risks include toxic effects on the cardiovascular, developmental, gastrointestinal, the reproductive and respiratory systems as well as on human organs such as liver, kidney and skin.

It is ranked as one of the most hazardous compounds (worst 10%) to ecosystems and human health. If TCE has polluted the groundwater and soil beneath buildings, its vapors can enter buildings through cracks and fissures in the foundations. It needs to be filtered or aired out to prevent high concentrations in the ambient air.

If you’re concerned about vapor intrusion in your building, contact one of our Air Quality Experts now, or take advantage of our Live Support system.

Source:  http://www.mv-voice.com/news/show_story.php?story_id=3967

Bed bugs: Cleaning up after the cleanup

Firm fined, ordered to clean up homes it treated with hazardous chemicals to combat bed bugs

Sometimes, doing wrong comes back to bite you.
The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) on Jan. 31 fined a pest control company $860,000 for using hazardous pesticides to combat bed bugs in residential homes.
TVF Pest Control used dangerous chemicals in at least 50 homes in the first half of 2010, according to the report in The Jersey Journal.

Pesticides not approved for indoor use
The DEP investigation found that the company used Malathion and Carbaryl in the homes, even though the two pesticides have not been approved for indoor use. They can be absorbed through the skin and cause symptoms such as headaches, nausea and dizziness, muscle twitching and vomiting.

Exposure has been linked to chronic health effects
Pesticides are among the most widely used chemicals in the world, and also among the most dangerous to human health, as said by the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. Exposure to pesticides can lead to chronic health effects. In this case, the firm used two widely used insecticides that are deployed in agriculture and residential landscaping. They should not have been used indoors, and it’s sad to think that the residents of these 50 homes were exposed to them in the first place.

Health organizations warn against using pesticides to treat bed bugs
The US Environmental Protection Agency recently released a stark warning against using pesticides to treat bed bugs, saying it is dangerous for humans and doesn't solve the problem.

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