News Coverage
EPA draft cites 'important' Teflon issues
Pollutants linger in humans, but levels not yet believed hazardous
Published January 13, 2005
Exposure to chemicals used to make Teflon and other nonstick consumer products may increase risks of developmental or immune system disorders or other health problems in people, according to a draft federal report released Wednesday.
The report also said blood levels in the general population appear to be hundreds or thousands of times lower than the minimum expected to produce adverse effects in rats and monkeys, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
But human bodies may retain and concentrate the pollutants for much longer periods than animals, the EPA said. Higher exposure levels in the workplace or in neighborhoods around factories that handle the chemicals, known as PFOA-type compounds, also are a concern. There is evidence that PFOA-type compounds may remain in the environment for thousands of years.
"Our view is there are a number of important issues where we need the input of scientific experts," said Charles M. Auer, who directs the EPA's Office of Pollution, Prevention and Toxics. "We also believe it's important to gather additional information."
The DuPont Co., which makes Teflon, said in a prepared statement Wednesday that it considered the draft report important to helping to understand data on exposures to the chemicals. On Monday, the company reported that a study of its workers who use the Teflon ingredient found no cancer risk, but a slight increase in cholesterol.
One environmental group charged that the EPA wrongly omitted evidence that PFOA may increase cancer risks.
Federal officials released the draft report amid continuing disputes over risks posed by findings that humans and animals around the globe have unexplained low levels of the chemicals in their bloodstreams. Some studies already have provided "suggestive evidence" that the chemicals may increase cancer risks, the report noted.
Weight loss in animals, delayed sexual maturity, changes in the liver and cholesterol levels, and death shortly after birth were found in various animal studies.
The findings were sent to the Science Advisory Board for review, with initial discussions set for the board's meeting in late February.
Last year, the DuPont Co. agreed to a settlement with residents near the company's plant in Parkersburg, W.Va., after a class-action lawsuit claimed the company had contaminated public water supplies in West Virginia and Ohio with PFOA compounds, referred to as C-8 by DuPont. The settlement, due for a public hearing next month in W.Va., could cost the company up to $343 million.
Group presses EPA
The Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., accused the EPA of ignoring internal guidelines for evaluating cancer-causing potential, and said the agency failed to account for DuPont's recent findings on PFOA and cholesterol.
"They're calling this a comprehensive risk assessment, and it's just not," said Tim Kropp, senior scientist for the group. "This is one of the largest issues they've ever had to deal with. It's in everyone's blood. It does not break down, it's everywhere environmentally. They've either dropped the ball or there was some serious influence on the creation of this very important document."
The environmental group has pressed the EPA to sanction DuPont for failing to report information about the toxicity of PFOA. The group accused the agency Wednesday of tilting its findings in DuPont's favor.
Evaluations continue
The EPA is now coordinating an industry attempt to evaluate the sources and fate in the environment of C-8 type compounds, based on concern about risks from cancer, developmental problems and other health effects including immune system damage. Areas under research include the possibility that PFOA may be released into the environment when nonstick compounds and related materials are overheated.
The EPA study compared PFOA in the blood of humans to studies using rats and monkeys. Human blood levels were 398 times lower than the lowest linked to weight loss in female rats, 16,739 times lower than that connected to increased liver weight and possible death in monkeys and up to 78,546 times lower than the level tied to weight loss, death and delayed sexual maturity in rats.