News Coverage
EPA says women, children more susceptible to C8 risks than men
Published March 28, 2003
Children are being exposed to unsafe levels of an unregulated chemical used to produce Teflon and other products, an environmental advocacy group said.
Children and women of childbearing age are more susceptible than men to health risks associated with the chemical, says a draft U.S. Environmental Protection Agency study.
Ammonium perfluorooctanoate, also referred to as C8, has been used by DuPont's Washington Works plant for more than 50 years. It is the subject of a lawsuit filed by customers of the Lubeck Public Service District in Wood County that charges their drinking water has been contaminated by the chemical.
The chemical also has been found in water samples taken by the Little Hocking Water Association in Little Hocking, Ohio.
Earlier this month, DuPont defended C8, saying although it causes cancer to animals in laboratory tests, no adverse human health effects have been found.
"We still stand by that," George Ainsley, a plant spokesman, said Friday.
The EPA's draft risk assessment is based on a study of rats and reviews of health screenings conducted at three separate 3M plants. The study does not mention DuPont's Wood County plant.
In assessing potential risk, the EPA used a margin of exposure to determine acceptable exposure levels. Researchers said little information is available on C8's effects on humans, but animal studies have shown that it targets the liver and blood.
The report estimated that women of childbearing age and girls ages 2 to 12 have a margin of exposure from 66 to 80. EPA considers numbers below 100 to indicate unacceptable risk. Men and boys were estimated to have a margin of exposure from 9,125 to 11,108.
Interpreting how the levels translate into "potential levels of concern" requires additional review, the study said.
Since the study is still in draft form, an EPA spokesman declined to comment Friday on the findings. The study, dated March 17, was released Thursday by the Environmental Working Group.
The Washington, D.C.-based group said Friday on its Web site that some children already have blood levels of C8 at or above those found in laboratory studies to cause serious toxicity, and that current C8 exposure levels to children are "well above safe levels."
Ainsley released a statement saying DuPont considers it "inappropriate" to use the study as a reference on C8 since it is still a draft.
C8, a key chemical in the manufacturing of Teflon, has not been regulated by eit
her state or federal agencies. The chemical is produced at a DuPont plant in Fayetteville, N.C.The state Department of Environmental Protection recently imposed limits on C8 air emissions from the Wood County plant.
DuPont agreed to limit such emissions in a December 2001 consent order that established temporary guidelines while the EPA developed permanent guidelines for the chemical. The consent order covers both air and water emissions.
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