WINTER 2003: INFORMation
(Click here for the full Winter 2003 INFORM Reports in PDF format.)

Persistent Toxic Chemicals: They're in the Products

Government programs aimed at safeguarding public health from toxic chemicals generally focus on chemicals contained in the waste streams of industrial plants. But a less well-known risk is posed by products -- including ones that we use every day -- which INFORM's research has shown to contain much larger amounts of these substances. For instance, computers contain lead, a known neurotoxin, and children's toys may contain softeners called phthalates, which can cause problems of the liver, kidneys, and respiratory and reproductive systems. These chemicals are especially dangerous because once released to the air or water from products disposed of in landfills or incinerators, they persist in the environment and may accumulate in living organisms, posing long-term risks to fish, other wildlife, and the animals that consume them, including humans. In a study to be released later this year, INFORM reports that, of the persistent and toxic chemicals leaving manufacturing plants in New Jersey in 2000, approximately 1.9 billion pounds were incorporated into consumer and industrial products and only 60 million pounds were contained in waste -- that's 97% in products versus 3% in waste. The study, entitled Building Up to Danger, describes how exposure to persistent toxins can occur during the manufacture, use, disposal, and even recycling of the products that contain them, and presents policy recommendations to address the problems caused by the presence of these dangerous substances in consumer products.

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