USA Today, Peter Eisler
Published February 13, 2002
WASHINGTON - The nation's most popular pressure-treated lumber will be phased out of use by the end of 2003 because it contains arsenic, but federal officials say there is no need to tear down countless decks and playsets across America.
The Environmental Protection Agency announced Tuesday that manufacturers have voluntarily agreed to halt residential uses of wood permeated with chromated copper arsenate, or CCA, an arsenic-laden pesticide used in 90% of all pressure-treated lumber.
Final negotiations on the agreement, which has been anticipated for weeks, focused largely on the advice the EPA would offer to consumers who already own CCA-treated structures. Tuesday's announcement suggested only that people may want to coat them with an oil-based sealant.
"We haven't completed a scientific assessment (of the arsenic risks) so it's difficult to say" what consumers should do, says Stephen Johnson, the EPA's chief of pesticide regulation. "We don't believe there's any reason to remove or replace existing structures, such as decks or play structures, or to disturb surrounding soils."
There's considerable scientific debate over the risks of arsenic in treated wood. The toxic metal is known to cause various cancers and is especially risky for children.
The EPA is proceeding with a study of the risks associated with industrial uses of CCA-treated wood that will remain permitted, such as utility poles and guardrails. It's unclear whether that study will evaluate the threats posed by CCA-treated lumber in residential uses. That, officials say, depends on whether initial research suggests that health threats in those settings warrant further evaluation, given that new residential uses of CCA are being eliminated.
The phaseout marks the demise of the last consumer-marketed pesticide known to cause cancer. It also will reshape the $4-billion-a-year pressure-treated-lumber industry.
Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., introduced legislation Tuesday to ban any new residential use of CCA-treated wood immediately. Several state legislatures also are expected to consider similar bills, including legislation to halt the wood's use in public playgrounds.
Dave Fowlie of CSI, one of three licensed producers of CCA for the wood-preserving industry, says many treatment plants already are shifting to alternative chemicals. His company began developing a substitute, alkaline copper quaternary, about seven years ago and will boost production to meet new market demands.
"The big issue is the conversion of our customers - the people who actually treat the wood," he says, noting that wood-treaters will have to change piping and other equipment to convert from CCA to any alternative. Some estimate that 350 wood-treatment plants nationwide use CCA.
The treated-wood industry has commissioned studies showing that arsenic exposure from a typical deck or play structure is minimal, amounting to about what a person might get from soil and drinking water. Studies also have shown that the amount of arsenic leaching from treated structures tends to diminish substantially after about six months.
However, academic reviews and studies done by consumer and environmental groups have found extremely high arsenic exposures for people in regular contact with CCA-treated wood, especially in the case of children who play on the material. Analyses of CCA-treated playgrounds in Florida, California and other states have documented arsenic levels far above federal safety standards, even on structures a decade old.
"Our hope is that this agreement will put a scarlet letter on this product and people will just stop buying it," says Paul Bogart of the Healthy Building Network, which pushed to get CCA-treated wood off the market.
Experts suggest several options to reduce arsenic exposure from pressure-treated lumber:
Paints and sealers help contain arsenic leaching. The Environmental Protection Agency recommends conventional water sealer because more impervious coatings, such as paints and urethanes, can peel when they get old. Sanding peeling paint or urethanes off an arsenic-treated surface can be risky.
Physical barriers, usually in the form of plastic- and vinyl-based covers, are available for many pressure-treated structures. These materials are made to fit over standard-size decking and structural members, like conventional vinyl siding, and are available in various colors and textures.
Replacement of treated wood can be done with a variety of substitute products on the market. Some companies offer wood treated with different federally approved chemicals. Others firms sell wood substitutes made from recycled plastic and rubber, even rice straw.
Home test kits to check arsenic levels in pressure-treated decks, play sets and other structures are available, at cost, from the Environmental Working Group, a non-profit research organization, through its Web site (
www.ewg.org).
