Pesticide and Environmental Update
Arsenic
Risk in Children's Playground Equipment
Children are more likely to be exposed to harmful levels of arsenic
from play structures, picnic tables and decks than from drinking water
according to a recent Environmental Working Group (EWG) study. "We
know that arsenic in drinking water is dangerous for kids, but what we
found was that the arsenic in lumber is an even greater risk," said
EWG analyst Renee Sharp. "In less than ten days, an average five year
old playing on an arsenic-treated playset would exceed the lifetime cancer
risk considered acceptable under federal pesticide law." The report,
entitled "Poisoned Playgrounds," is based on analysis of data
from 180 samples of treated wood taken across the U.S. and an extensive
review of scientific literature.
Virtually all of the lumber sold for outdoor use in the U.S. is
pressure-treated and injected with toxins that act as preservatives and
pesticides. Chromated copper arsenate (CCA) is the most common wood
preservative used in the U.S., containing 22% pure arsenic. Arsenic is an
acute poisoning hazard, can cause skin, bladder and lung cancer in humans
and is linked to diabetes and endocrine disruption. Children are more
susceptible than adults to the impacts of arsenic exposure since their
bodies are still developing, they absorb more pesticide per pound of body
weight and touch CCA-treated wood on a regular basis.
A 12-foot section of pressure-treated lumber contains about an ounce of
arsenic, or enough to kill 250 people. The U.S. wood products industry is
the world's largest consumer of the poison, using half of all arsenic
produced worldwide. Although arsenic is banned as a pesticide for
agriculture and food applications, wood treatment has a special exemption
under U.S. pesticide laws.
Lab and field studies show that potentially hazardous amounts of
arsenic leach out of CCA-treated wood, potentially contaminating
groundwater and soil and infiltrating living organisms through ingestion
or absorption.
An EWG study of two play structures in Oakland, California, discovered
high levels of arsenic that could significantly increase a child's
lifetime risk of cancer. In Florida, dozens of public playgrounds were
closed following detection of high levels of arsenic. In response to
public concern, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently
proposed labeling all pieces of CCA-treated lumber and developing in-store
displays to tell consumers about the dangers associated with the lumber.
EPA is conducting a reassessment of CCA that will be released for public
review in 2002.
The Healthy Building Network—a coalition of builders, health
advocates and environmentalists—is petitioning the Consumer Product
Safety Commission (CPSC) for an outright ban on arsenic in lumber, urging
manufacturers and retailers to use alternative types of wood.
Center for Environmental Health (CEH), a California-based advocacy
group, has filed a legal notice to sue 11 U.S. manufacturers of
arsenic-treated wooden playground equipment. A successful lawsuit would
force manufacturers to either warn the public of risks pose by arsenic or
to stop using arsenic altogether.
To reduce children's exposure to arsenic in CCA-treated wood, avoid
eating on CCA-treated picnic tables or cover the table with a
plastic-coated tablecloth, seal CCA-treated wood structures annually with
polyurethane or other hard lacquer, use wood products that do not contain
arsenic for new construction and tell children to wash their hands after
playing on CCA-treated surfaces, particularly before eating.
Sources: Environmental Working Group "Poisoned Playgrounds,"
2001, available at http://www.ewg.org/pub/home/Reports/poisonedplaygrounds/es.html;
Environmental Working Group Press Release, "Healthy Building Network,
Environmental Working Group, Petition Consumer Product Safety Commission
to Ban Sale of Arsenic-treated Lumber for Playgrounds," May 23, 2001;
MSNBC Your Environment, "Poisoned Playgrounds?," August 8, 2001;
Environmental Protection Agency Press Release, July 3, 2001.
Contacts: Environmental Working Group, 1904 Franklin St., Suite 515,
Oakland, CA 94612; phone (510) 444-0973; fax (510) 444-0982; email info@ewg.org;
Web site http://www.ewg.org; or Center
for Environmental Health, 528 61st Street Suite A, Oakland, CA 94609;
phone (510) 594-9864; fax (510) 594-9863; email ceh@cehca.org; Web site http://www.cehca.org
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