From:
Monona Rossol <actsnyc**At_Symbol_Here**CS.COM>
Subject:
Re: [DCHAS-L] Interesting article about flame retardants
Date:
Jan 29, 2013 02:27 UTC
Reply-To:
DCHAS-L
In-Reply-To:
Yes, those PBDEs are an interesting bunch. I use them even in lectures to nonchemists to illustrate "substitution." We start with benzene ring and yank off an H to make it a phenyl. Then we connect two phenyls to make a biphenyl. Then we replace hydrogens with chlorine and show there are 209 of these PCBs. Then we do exactly what industry did after the PCBs were banned, we replace the chlorines with bromines creating 209 varieties of PBBs. Then we talk about the big human experiment in Michigan where people got chloracne and other PCB diseases from the PBBs that got in the food chain. Then I show that industry's answer was to shove an oxygen in between the two brominated phenyls to make the PBDEs and introduced these into our blood streams without testing just like they did all the others.
Substitution is only a good strategy if the new chemical has been tested and found safer than the old one. And that ain't happn.
Monona Rossol, M.S., M.F.A., Industrial Hygienist
President: Arts, Crafts & Theater Safety, Inc.
Safety Officer: Local USA829, IATSE
181 Thompson St., #23
New York, NY 10012 212-777-0062
-----Original Message-----
From: Karen Salazar <kls_1**At_Symbol_Here**COX.NET>
To: DCHAS-L <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**MED.CORNELL.EDU>
Sent: Tue, Jan 29, 2013 5:43 am
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Interesting article about flame retardants
Considering the discussion about flame retardant lab coats, I saw this article about flame retardants today. I thought it might interest the group.
