^®: CRE Regulatory Action of the Week

Teflon Under Fire
On April 14th, EPA announced that it was accelerating its TSCA review of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a chemical used to make Teflon and other purposes. EPA's announcement follows an April 11th petition by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) which asks EPA to investigate whether DuPont violated TSCA Section 8(e) by failing to provide EPA information DuPont allegedly had regarding the reproductive effects of PFOA. The information allegedly includes blood tests that Dupont performed during the 1980s on pregnant employees at a West Virginia plant. In a press release, DuPont denies the Petition's allegations. DuPont contends, "There is no evidence or data that demonstrates PFOA causes adverse human effects, including developmental or reproductive effects, in any segment of human population." DuPont further notes that the information at issue "is an informal recording of the presence of low levels of PFOA in eight blood samples taken from female employees in or near the fluoropolymer manufacturing area at DuPont's Parkersburg, W. Va., site in the early 1980s." While "the information records one confirmed birth defect, there is no indication that it was caused by exposure to PFOA." EPA cautions that there is much uncertainty regarding this issue, and that it "does not believe there is any reason for consumers to stop using any consumer or industrial related products." EPA and the industry have agreed that the industry will submit new data to EPA by June 15.