Chemicals of Concern

U.S. laws regulating the use of toxic chemicals are outdated and have failed to protect children, workers, and communities from chemical exposures that may harm their health. Regulatory changes are needed to protect human health and the environment from the devastating impacts of toxic chemicals and to transform our economy into one that is cleaner and greener.

Toxic chemicals, including lead, brominated flame retardants, cadmium, phthalates, bisphenol A and others, linked to serious health and environmental problems. Yet these chemicals are legally allowed to be added to the products used by people, including children, every day under current regulations.

Although most people assume that products are tested for safety before being sold in the marketplace, there is virtually no federal oversight to ensure the safety of chemicals added to consumer products. Nor is there any way for consumers to know which chemicals are in the products they purchase. The recalls of millions of toys due to lead contamination in late 2007 highlight the dual problem of lack of effective chemical safety standards and insufficient information about the amounts and types of chemicals used in products.

Major shortcomings in the outdated federal law designed to regulate toxic chemicals, the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), has left the public unprotected from chemical exposure. Passed by Congress in 1976, TSCA empowers the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate chemical usage based on the risk to human health. Since then, only an estimated 2 percent of the 62,000 chemicals in commerce at that time have been reviewed for human health risks; now it is estimated that more than 80,000 chemicals are in use today. In 32 years, only five chemical substances have been banned or restricted under TSCA: PCBs, chlorofluorocarbons, dioxin, asbestos and hexavalent chromium.

Fortunately, change is coming. Organizations across the country are working at the state level to create effective state policy solutions and generate a national base of support for change in federal chemical policy. Reforms have been won in more than 13 states, forming the foundation of a strong movement for much needed federal change.