From March 14, 2001
Pressure Treated
Wood Leaks Unsafe Levels of Arsenic
Updated on March 14,
2001
The St. Petersburg
Times finds arsenic leaking unsafe levels from pressure-treated lumber
used to build decks, playgrounds, picnic tables and docks. The special
report printed in the Times on March 11, 2001 states that the levels of
arsenic leaking from the treated wood is more than ten times higher than
those considered safe by the state of Florida. Florida officials added,
"pressure-treated lumber is leaking arsenic out of unlined landfills,
posing a threat to drinking water."
Arsenicals are just
one of three major wood preservatives used to treat pressure-treated wood.
The arsenicals contain mixtures of salts of metals. Copper chromated arsenic
(CCA), for example, contains salts of copper, chromium, arsenic, and other
contaminants, including lead.
The Times hired Thorton
Laboratories of Tampa to test the soil around five wooden playgrounds
around the Tampa Bay area. The results show arsenic in the soil at one
playground nearly seven times greater than the level the state considers
safe for neighborhoods and eleven times greater at another. This is up
to three times more arsenic than the state allows in the cleanup at the
Stauffer Chemical Superfund site in Tarpon Springs, reports the Times.
The Connecticut Department
of Health issued the following warning back in 1998: "It is now clear
that exposure from CCA-treated wood can be the major source of arsenic
for children who frequently play on CCA-treated playscapes, tree houses,
or decks... Arsenic is easily taken up onto hands from simple contact
with the wood surface. Young children with frequent hand-to-mouth activity
may swallow some of this arsenic … should be prevented from playing
underneath CCA-treated structures, including backyard playscapes, to minimize
exposure to soil which may be contaminated with arsenic."
Scott Ramminger, president
of the American Wood Preservers Institute, told the Times that the product
is "perfectly safe."
Beyond Pesticides/NCAMP's investigative reports on pressure-treated wood,
Poison Poles: A Report on Their Toxic Trail and the Safer Alternatives
and Pole Pollution: New Utility Pole Chemical Risks Identified by EPA
While Survey Shows Widespread Contamination (available on our website),
finds that the chemicals used as wood preservatives are among the most
toxic pesticides known to humankind. Pressure-treated wood is not only
used for decks, playgrounds, picnic tables, and docks, but also for utility
polls and railroad ties. Wood preservatives used in pressure treated lumber
constitute the single largest pesticide use in the U.S., accounting for
nearly one billion pounds annually. Beyond Pesticides/NCAMP began to work
for a more responsible federal policy on these chemicals back in the early
1980s when the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) put them into a special
review process because of the recognized hazards associated with their
continued use.
There are alternatives
to preservative treated wood. The Energy Cooperative in Newark, Ohio is
just one example of a utility company replacing all of its wood poles
with recycled steel poles. The Energy Cooperative has proven the economic
feasibility of using alternative materials. The Times reported that Disney
stopped using wood treated with CCA at its Animal Kingdom, due to concern
for the animals.
For more information
about pressure treated wood contact Beyond
Pesticides/NCAMP at [email protected]
or at 202-543-5450. Click
here for a copy of the St. Petersburg Times article, "The poison
in your back yard."