Sludge Watch ==> PBDE phase out bill attracts ire of chemical company

[Maureen Reilly]

http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/news/statehouse/070419retardants.html

Ad blitz targets proposed flame-retardants ban
E-mail this page Reader Comments (below) By GLENN ADAMS, Associated Press © 
Copyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not 
be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Thursday, April 19, 
2007


AUGUSTA - A newspaper, television and radio advertising blitz targets a bill 
before the Legislature that would make Maine the next state to phase out the 
use of certain flame retardants in furniture and plastic-covered products.

The bill, similar to one signed into law Tuesday by Washington's governor, 
is supported by the state fire marshal and firefighters' associations. But 
full-page ads that have been appearing in Maine newspapers, bearing the 
title "False Alarm," say the measure is unneeded and riddled with 
exemptions.
The proposal calls for a phase-out of the use of the so-called "deca" forms 
of polybrominated diphenyl ethers in mattresses and upholstered furniture 
starting next January. They would be banned in televisions, computers and 
other plastic-cased electronics by Jan. 1, 2010.

A work session on the bill before the Committee on Natural Resources that 
was scheduled for Wednesday has been postponed to Tuesday. But the debate 
continues in full-page ads purchased by the Bromine Science and 
Environmental Forum and in State House hallways.

The sponsor, House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, calls her bill one of the 
most important this session addressing chemical pollutants in the 
environment.
The North Haven Democrat said there's "significant" scientific evidence that 
the absorption of PBDE "is a very real threat to women and children because 
these chemicals are passed to infants through breast milk and through 
contact with household dust."
Pingree's bill builds on legislation she sponsored in 2004 that was enacted. 
It phased out two forms of PBDEs known as penta and octa and set a goal of 
phasing out the most widely used PBDE, deca, by 2008.

Firefighters in Maine say the chemical becomes more dangerous after it burns 
because it turns into a noxious gas that can be breathed in or absorbed 
through the skin. They also say equally effective alternatives are 
available.

Supporters, who include the Professional Firefighters of Maine, Maine Fire 
Chiefs Association and Fire Marshal John Dean, say the opponents' ads are 
misleading and leave an erroneous suggestion that the bill would outlaw all 
fire retardants.
Dean, also president of the National Association of State Fire Marshals, 
said he has followed the issue for years and is satisfied that safe 
alternatives to deca are available.

Supporters of the Maine legislation note that the industry staged a similar 
ad blitz in Washington before Gov. Chris Gregoire made her state the 
nation's first to enact a bill phasing out the fire retardant. They say PDBE 
bans have also been introduced in a half-dozen other states.
In Maine, several health and environmental groups have stepped forward in 
support of Pingree's bill.

The Bromine Science and Environmental Forum, an association of manufacturers 
of flame retardants, says on its Web site that Maine lawmakers "are playing 
with fire" in considering Pingree's bill.