The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Trump Administration has undermined children's health again-- this time by unceremoniously defunding the Children’s Environmental Health Research Centers program. These centers, based at academic institutions around the country, including the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) are charged with examining how pollution and chemicals in our air, water, … Continue reading The attack on children’s health
Many people know that developing fetuses are especially vulnerable to toxic chemicals — this is why during pregnancy doctors advise you not to eat fish high in mercury as it affects the fetus’ rapidly growing brain. But ask anyone who has been pregnant, and they’ll tell you their bodies also underwent radical changes. To better … Continue reading Don’t put pregnancy in a corner: it’s about more than fetal health
As many times as my parents used it, “because I said so” is never a good rationale-- but that’s basically what EPA wants us to believe for why the chemical Pigment Violet 29 is not risky. We blogged previously that the meager available data does not support this conclusion, and EPA’s release of additional information- … Continue reading Using shoddy methods, EPA says chemical is not risky
EPA’s Science Advisory Board (SAB) is meeting June 5-6, 2019 to discuss key issues underlying how the Agency evaluates and uses science in policy decisions. Dr. Tracey Woodruff, Professor and Director at the University of California, San Francisco Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment, gave this statement: Listening to today's EPA meeting with its … Continue reading EPA pushes ‘transparency’ rule as science advisors dissent
In October 2017, Drew Wynne, 31, succumbed to methylene chloride fumes while removing paint from the floors of his coffee company. This was almost a year after EPA proposed but refused to finalize a rule to ban methylene chloride paint strippers (“2017 rule”) which could have prevented his death. When EPA finalized their rule in … Continue reading The deadly omission in EPA’s Methylene Chloride rule
The House Energy & Commerce sub-committee on Environment and Climate Change is holding a hearing on “Mismanaging Chemical Risks: EPA’s Failure to Protect Workers.” Dr. Tracey Woodruff, Professor and Director at the University of California, San Francisco Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment, gave this statement: "The science is clear: workers face disproportionately high … Continue reading House investigates EPA’s failures on workers and toxic chemicals
Assessing environmental hazards often requires the evaluating a diverse body of evidence of varying quality. It is critical to consider the credibility of the individual studies used in the evaluation to reach conclusions through a consistent, transparent, and empirically-demonstrated methods such as those used in systematic review. The GRADE Working Group recently released one such … Continue reading ROBINS-E: Good studies gone bad
Methylene chloride is a chemical used in paint strippers that is bad for the environment and very toxic — it can even kill you. Methylene chloride is dangerous for workers and consumers and we need safer strippers- but my new research shows the dark side of making a substitution without a careful evaluation. My colleagues from … Continue reading Paint strippers need informed solutions, not regrettable substitution
One of EPA’s core responsibilities under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) is to protect public health by evaluating chemicals and limiting the risky ones. EPA recently released step one in this process-- its first chemical evaluation since TSCA was reformed in 2016, on the chemical Pigment Violet 29. Unfortunately, our analysis found alarmingly poor … Continue reading EPA assessment should be called Pigment “Violate” the science
1,4-dioxane is a cancer-causing chemical contaminating drinking water in Michigan, a situation local officials are calling “a slow-motion environmental disaster,” and significant problem with the water supply. Yet, despite such clear and acknowledged dangers, EPA will ignore 1,4-dioxane in people’s drinking water entirely in its health risk evaluation under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). … Continue reading EPA ignoring major risks in chemical assessments
