California Adds Chemical to "Prop 65" List

October 12, 2011  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in Green on October 13, 2011

The State of California has placed flame retardant chlorinated tris on its "Prop 65" list of harmful chemicals.

The chemical, which was removed from baby pajamas in 1977 due to concerns about carcinogenicity, is used as a flame retardant in foam in U.S. furniture and baby products. The listing won't ban the chemical from use but could result in a labeling requirement for consumer products containing the chemical.

The Carcinogen Identification Committee, a scientific committee appointed by the Governor, added TDCPP (chlorinated Tris) to the Proposition 65 list, which requires the publication of a list of chemicals, known to the state to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have reported that chlorinated Tris poses a cancer hazard.

"The listing of chlorinated tris on Prop 65 is a public health victory," said Sarah Janssen, MD, Ph.D., senior scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council. "Widespread exposure to this chemical, now officially identified as a cancer-causing chemical, threatens vulnerable populations. This listing should result in labeling requirements for products that contain  dangerous levels of this chemical."

"Flame retardants like Tris leach out of furniture and end up in dust in our homes. We unknowingly inhale and ingest Tris into our bodies," said Arlene Blum Ph.D., Visiting Scholar at the University of California, Berkeley Chemistry Department and executive director of the Green Science Policy Institute. "We tested 100 baby products and 100 couches, and found dangerous levels of Tris more often than any other flame retardant."