C8 a 'likely carcinogen,' EPA panel concludes

Charleston Gazette, Ken Ward Jr.
Published June 28, 2005

DuPont Co.'s toxic chemical C8 is a "likely human carcinogen," a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency scientific committee has concluded. The 17-member panel found in a draft report that C8 is a more serious health threat than EPA reported in a risk assessment study released in January. "The available animal data indicate a carcinogenic potential for [C8] in humans," said the draft report released Monday. Members of the EPA Science Advisory Board panel are scheduled to review the draft during a public meeting July 6 in Washington. The EPA is in the final stages of a first-of-its kind study of how C8 has gotten into most Americans' bloodstreams and whether it is harmful. At the same time, DuPont is facing millions of dollars in civil penalties - and a criminal investigation - for allegedly hiding information about C8's dangers from regulators and the public. But the preliminary science board findings are also a blow to the EPA, which had said scientific data provided only "suggestive evidence" that C8 could cause cancer in humans. C8 is a growing health concern nationwide, but is of particular importance in West Virginia. For more than 50 years, DuPont has used C8 at its Washington Works plant near Parkersburg to make Teflon and other products. On July 5, the state Environmental Quality Board is scheduled to review a state Department of Environmental Protection permit for DuPont. The permit covers a toxic waste dump where DuPont has disposed of huge amounts of C8-containing wastes. But DEP officials have declined to limit the amount of C8 the landfill can discharge into a nearby creek. Jessica Greathouse, a DEP spokeswoman, said Tuesday that agency lawyer Perry McDaniel has been following the EPA C8 study. But she said McDaniel had not yet read the draft science advisory panel report. DEP Secretary Stephanie Timmermeyer has recused herself from C8-related matters, Greathouse said. Before joining the DEP, Timmermeyer represented DuPont in C8 and other matters. In its 31-page draft report, the EPA panel said studies have linked C8 exposure to four types of cancerous tumors: testicular, liver, pancreatic and breast. The panel emphasized that a study that found elevated mammary gland tumor rates in female rats "should not be dismissed" by EPA. "Human cancer data on [C8] are inadequate to support a conclusion of the presence or absence of a causal association," the EPA panel concluded. The panel said animal studies and the available human data support the conclusion that C8 is a "likely human carcinogen." Under the EPA's own guidelines, that term "is typically applied to agents that tested positive in more than one species, sex, strain, site or exposure route, with or without evidence of carcinogenicity in humans; or a positive study that indicates a highly significant result where the response is assumed to be relevant to humans," the panel said. DuPont officials declined to offer detailed comments on the EPA panel's draft report. In a prepared statement, DuPont said the company "believes that the weight of evidence suggests that [C8] exposure does not cause cancer in humans, and does not pose a health risk to the general public." In February, a Wood County judge approved a $ 107.6 million settlement of a lawsuit filed against DuPont on behalf of thousands of residents whose drinking water was allegedly poisoned with C8. The EPA has alleged in a civil lawsuit that DuPont has caused "widespread contamination" of drinking water supplies near its Parkersburg plant." The EPA also alleged that this pollution has created a "substantial risk of injury to the health or the environment." The Washington-based Environmental Working Group has been investigating C8 issues. On Tuesday, the group alerted reporters to the EPA panel's draft report and then held a conference call to discuss the study. "This will accelerate the whole process and give it some teeth," said Richard Wiles, vice president of the group.