Our Health, Our Environment News

As the new home of MASSPIRG's environmental work, Environment Massachusetts can be contacted regarding this news release. 

BOSTON—A commonly used flame retardant threatens health and illustrates the need to reform toxic chemical policy, according to a new report released today by MASSPIRG. In lab tests, scientists have linked decabrominated diphenyl ether (Deca)—a chemical closely related to two flame retardants recently banned in California—to health effects including neurological damage and permanent memory loss, and have detected the chemical in the breast milk of American women at higher levels than anywhere else in the world.

"It's astonishing that we are exposed to Deca in everyday products in the home and at work that could lead to irreversible damages to our health," said Tobi Quinto, Director of Advocacy and Policy at the Massachusetts Public Health Association. "This report offers compelling evidence for implementing more responsible policies- as done in California and the European Union and supported by industry itself- that will better protect public health and prevent exposure to toxic chemicals before it's too late."

Toxic flame-retardants like Deca are widely used in a variety of common consumer products, including in electronics and electrical equipment, as well as in upholstery and other textiles. North American industry used more than 49 million pounds in 2001—about half the world market. In MA, there are 12 facilities that produce, process, or Use Decabromodiphenyl Ether—more than any other state in the country.

Deca and other toxic flame retardants escape from consumer products into air and water and have been found in household dust and in the food supply. The chemicals accumulate in the human body, pass from a mother to a developing fetus, and have been found in human breast milk.

"This is an important report about a hidden danger to our environment and health," said Jim Gomes, President of the Environmental League of Massachusetts. "Body of Evidence shows convincingly that people don't need to choose between safety from fires and safety from toxic chemicals: we can and should have both."

Deca is one type of flame retardant called polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs.) Deca breaks down under sunlight and during metabolic processes into the types of toxic flame-retardants, pentabrominated (Penta) and octabrominated (Octa) diphenyl ethers, recently banned in California and Europe. One manufacturer, Great Lakes Chemical Corporation in Indiana, has agreed to voluntarily phase out all their production of Penta by 2005 to avoid human health consequences nationwide.

"We cannot continue to expose children or adults to harmful chemicals like Deca while we wait for health impacts to develop. Harmful chemicals shouldn't come onto the market in the first place. Several bills are pending in the MA legislature right now that would begin to address these issues and we urge our elected officials to take them up now, " said Janet Domenitz, MASSPIRG's Executive Director.

The main U.S. law for chemicals regulation is the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Under TSCA, the EPA has the authority to ban chemicals, but must take on such a great burden for action they have not banned a chemical since PCBs were banned in 1976. As a result, chemicals like Deca can be on the market for decades before their threat to human health is discovered.

In response to broad concerns about the health impacts of toxic chemicals, Representative Jay Kaufman (D-Lexington) and Senator Steven Tolman (D-Brighton) have filed legislation in Massachusetts entitled "An Act for a Healthy Massachusetts: Safer Alternatives to Toxic Chemicals (H-2275/S-1268). The bill initially targets 10 of the worst toxic chemicals found in common household products including toxic flame retardants like Deca, and would mandate an alternatives review and process to replace toxic chemicals with safer alternatives where feasible.

Industry's argument against regulation has centered on the belief that Deca molecules were too big to be absorbed by people's bodies. California's ban did not include Deca because some argued the science was incomplete. However, several recent groundbreaking studies summarized in MASSPIRG's report found Deca in human blood and breast milk in the bodies of electronics workers as well as in people who had not been exposed in the workplace.

MASSPIRG, ELM, Clean Water Action, Mass. Public Health Association and over 100 other public health, environmental, and labor groups are members of a statewide coalition, Alliance for a Healthy Tomorrow, (AHT) , calling on government to prevent harm to our health from toxic hazards through changing policy from 'wait until the danger is done' to using more precaution in the use of such chemicals.