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GoGreenNation news

Petrochemical exposure linked to health risks

News Feed
Wednesday, March 20, 2024

A recent review highlights the harmful impact of petrochemicals on health, with evidence pointing to an increase in chronic diseases.Liza Gross reports for Inside Climate News.In short:Petrochemical production has surged since the 1950s, correlating with a rise in chronic and deadly diseases.The review calls for reduced reliance on fossil fuels, not only for environmental reasons but also to improve health outcomes, particularly for vulnerable communities.Regulatory oversight is lacking, with many chemicals entering the market without adequate safety testing, highlighting a need for systemic change.Key quote:"You can feel the effects of climate change, and know they're connected to fossil fuels. But the idea that fossil fuels are also connected to these chemicals we're exposed to, and are impacting our health, I thought, wow, there's a really important link here."— Tracey Woodruff, director of the program on reproductive health and the environment at the University of California, San FranciscoWhy this matters:Petrochemical facilities emit a variety of pollutants, including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulate matter, which can contribute to respiratory problems, cardiovascular disease, and cancer among nearby populations. Communities living in close proximity to these plants often report higher rates of these health issues compared to those living farther away.Studies show that the nearly 69,800 residents of Texas towns Cloverleaf and Channelview — more than a third of them children under 18 — are breathing some of the dirtiest air in the country.

A recent review highlights the harmful impact of petrochemicals on health, with evidence pointing to an increase in chronic diseases.Liza Gross reports for Inside Climate News.In short:Petrochemical production has surged since the 1950s, correlating with a rise in chronic and deadly diseases.The review calls for reduced reliance on fossil fuels, not only for environmental reasons but also to improve health outcomes, particularly for vulnerable communities.Regulatory oversight is lacking, with many chemicals entering the market without adequate safety testing, highlighting a need for systemic change.Key quote:"You can feel the effects of climate change, and know they're connected to fossil fuels. But the idea that fossil fuels are also connected to these chemicals we're exposed to, and are impacting our health, I thought, wow, there's a really important link here."— Tracey Woodruff, director of the program on reproductive health and the environment at the University of California, San FranciscoWhy this matters:Petrochemical facilities emit a variety of pollutants, including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulate matter, which can contribute to respiratory problems, cardiovascular disease, and cancer among nearby populations. Communities living in close proximity to these plants often report higher rates of these health issues compared to those living farther away.Studies show that the nearly 69,800 residents of Texas towns Cloverleaf and Channelview — more than a third of them children under 18 — are breathing some of the dirtiest air in the country.



A recent review highlights the harmful impact of petrochemicals on health, with evidence pointing to an increase in chronic diseases.

Liza Gross reports for Inside Climate News.

In short:

  • Petrochemical production has surged since the 1950s, correlating with a rise in chronic and deadly diseases.
  • The review calls for reduced reliance on fossil fuels, not only for environmental reasons but also to improve health outcomes, particularly for vulnerable communities.
  • Regulatory oversight is lacking, with many chemicals entering the market without adequate safety testing, highlighting a need for systemic change.

Key quote:

"You can feel the effects of climate change, and know they're connected to fossil fuels. But the idea that fossil fuels are also connected to these chemicals we're exposed to, and are impacting our health, I thought, wow, there's a really important link here."

— Tracey Woodruff, director of the program on reproductive health and the environment at the University of California, San Francisco

Why this matters:

Petrochemical facilities emit a variety of pollutants, including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulate matter, which can contribute to respiratory problems, cardiovascular disease, and cancer among nearby populations. Communities living in close proximity to these plants often report higher rates of these health issues compared to those living farther away.

Studies show that the nearly 69,800 residents of Texas towns Cloverleaf and Channelview — more than a third of them children under 18 — are breathing some of the dirtiest air in the country.

Read the full story here.
Photos courtesy of

Related News

Women on the Front Line: The Fight for a Better Life in Cancer Alley

Photographer Wayan Barre features some of the women fighting environmental injustice in the heartland of Louisiana.

In the heartland of Louisiana, between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, a 150-mile corridor along the Mississippi River tells a tale of environmental degradation, social injustice, and economic struggle. This region, home to more than 150 behemoth chemical facilities and oil refineries, is also home to numerous communities, predominantly low-income and marginalized. Nearly 50 percent of the residents are African American, their roots intertwined with the land for centuries, dating back to the days of slavery when they were forced to cut and process sugarcane on vast plantations that dominated Louisiana’s River Parishes. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reports a staggering 95 percent higher risk of cancer due to air pollution for residents in this area compared with the rest of the United States. This tragedy has earned the corridor the morbid moniker “Cancer Alley,” a term underscored in 2021 by United Nations human rights experts as a stark example of environmental racism. On the front lines of this battle, women—most of them African American—are powering the environmental justice movement. Here are a few of their stories. These photos, along with another version of this story, are scheduled to appear in the January 2025 edition of Country Roads magazine in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Chemicals
Pollution

Maryland Sues Maker of Gore-Tex Over Pollution From Toxic 'Forever Chemicals'

Maryland is suing the company that produces the waterproof material Gore-Tex

Maryland is suing the company that produces the waterproof material Gore-Tex often used for raincoats and other outdoor gear, alleging its leaders kept using “forever chemicals” long after learning about serious health risks associated with them.The complaint, which was filed last week in federal court, focuses on a cluster of 13 facilities in northeastern Maryland operated by Delaware-based W.L. Gore & Associates. It alleges the company polluted the air and water around its facilities with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, jeopardizing the health of surrounding communities while raking in profits.The lawsuit adds to other claims filed in recent years, including a class action on behalf of Cecil County residents in 2023 demanding Gore foot the bill for water filtration systems, medical bills and other damages associated with decades of harmful pollution in the largely rural community.“PFAS are linked to cancer, weakened immune systems, and can even harm the ability to bear children,” Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown said in a statement. “It is unacceptable for any company to knowingly contaminate our drinking water with these toxins, putting Marylanders at risk of severe health conditions.”Gore spokesperson Donna Leinwand Leger said the company is “surprised by the Maryland Attorney General’s decision to initiate legal action, particularly in light of our proactive and intensive engagement with state regulators over the past two years.”“We have been working with Maryland, employing the most current, reliable science and technology to assess the potential impact of our operations and guide our ongoing, collaborative efforts to protect the environment,” the company said in a statement, noting a Dec. 18 report that contains nearly two years of groundwater testing results.But attorney Philip Federico, who represents plaintiffs in the class action and other lawsuits against Gore, called the company’s efforts “too little, much too late.” In the meantime, he said, residents are continuing to suffer — one of his clients was recently diagnosed with kidney cancer.“It’s typical corporate environmental contamination,” he said. “They’re in no hurry to fix the problem.”The synthetic chemicals are especially harmful because they’re nearly indestructible and can build up in various environments, including the human body. In addition to cancers and immune system problems, exposure to certain levels of PFAS has been linked to increased cholesterol levels, reproductive health issues and developmental delays in children, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.Gore leaders failed to warn people living near its Maryland facilities about the potential impacts, hoping to protect their corporate image and avoid liability, according to the state’s lawsuit. The result has been “a toxic legacy for generations to come,” the lawsuit alleges. Since the chemicals are already in the local environment, protecting residents now often means installing complex and expensive water filtration systems. People with private wells have found highly elevated levels of dangerous chemicals in their water, according to the class action lawsuit.The Maryland facilities are located in a rural area just across the border from Delaware, where Gore has become a longtime fixture in the community. The company, which today employs more than 13,000 people, was founded in 1958 after Wilbert Gore left the chemical giant DuPont to start his own business. Its profile rose with the development of Gore-Tex, a lightweight waterproof material created by stretching polytetrafluoroethylene, which is better known by the brand name Teflon that’s used to coat nonstick pans. The membrane within Gore-Tex fabric has billions of pores that are smaller than water droplets, making it especially effective for outdoor gear. The state’s complaint traces Gore’s longstanding relationship with DuPont, arguing that information about the chemicals' dangers was long known within both companies as they sought to keep things quiet and boost profits. It alleges that as early as 1961, DuPont scientists knew the chemical caused adverse liver reactions in rats and dogs.DuPont has faced widespread litigation in recent years. Along with two spinoff companies, it announced a $1.18 billion deal last year to resolve complaints of polluting many U.S. drinking water systems with forever chemicals. The Maryland lawsuit seeks to hold Gore responsible for costs associated with the state’s ongoing investigations and cleanup efforts, among other damages. State oversight has ramped up following litigation from residents alleging their drinking water was contaminated.Until then, the company operated in Cecil County with little scrutiny.Gore announced in 2014 that it had eliminated perfluorooctanoic acid from the raw materials used to create Gore-Tex. But it’s still causing long-term impacts because it persists for so long in the environment, attorneys say. Over the past two years, Gore has hired an environmental consulting firm to conduct testing in the area and provided bottled water and water filtration systems to residents near certain Maryland facilities, according to a webpage describing its efforts. Recent testing of drinking water at residences near certain Gore sites revealed perfluorooctanoic acid levels well above what the EPA considers safe, according to state officials. Attorneys for the state acknowledged Gore’s ongoing efforts to investigate and address the problem but said the company needs to step up and be a better neighbor. “While we appreciate Gore’s limited investigation to ascertain the extent of PFAS contamination around its facilities, much more needs to be done to protect the community and the health of residents,” Maryland Department of the Environment Secretary Serena McIlwain said in a statement. “We must remove these forever chemicals from our natural resources urgently, and we expect responsible parties to pay for this remediation.”Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Photos You Should See - Sept. 2024

Chemicals
Pollution
Water

EPA to formally review risks of vinyl chloride and other toxic chemicals

Evaluation could lead to limits or bans on substances commonly used in the production of plastic and rubberThe Environmental Protection Agency is launching a formal review of five highly toxic plastic chemicals, including vinyl chloride, the notorious compound at the center of the East Palestine, Ohio, train wreck fire.The move could lead to strong limits or bans on the substances. Continue reading...

The Environmental Protection Agency is launching a formal review of five highly toxic plastic chemicals, including vinyl chloride, the notorious compound at the center of the East Palestine, Ohio, train wreck fire.The move could lead to strong limits or bans on the substances.Vinyl chloride is most commonly used in PVC pipe and packaging production, but is also cancerous and highly flammable. For about 50 years, the federal government has considered limits on the substance, but industry has thwarted most regulatory efforts, hid the substances’ risks and is already mobilizing against the new review.The step is “one of the most important chemical review processes ever undertaken” by the agency, said Judith Enck, president of Beyond Plastics and a former EPA administrator.“I applaud the EPA,” she added.The federal government designates vinyl chloride as a known carcinogen, and the substance is also a neurotoxicant linked to liver damage, permanent changes to bones, and other serious health issues. The EPA is also reviewing acetaldehyde, benzenamine, acrylonitrile and MBOCA, each used in the production of plastic and rubber. All the chemicals are considered to be or are probable carcinogens and linked to other health problems, like anemia, kidney damage and neurotoxicity.The nation’s use of vinyl chloride drew intense scrutiny after dozens of cars on a Norfolk Southern train derailed and burned in February 2023 in East Palestine. The fire burned near tankers carrying vinyl chloride, and, two days later, fearing a “major explosion”, officials conducted a controlled burn of the chemical as a preventive measure.When vinyl chloride burns, it creates dioxins, a highly toxic and carcinogenic chemical class that can stay in the environment for generations. The levels of dioxin found in East Palestine in the days after the wreck were hundreds of times greater than the exposure threshold above which the EPA in 2010 found poses cancer risks. Soil and food contamination are considered to be among the most common exposure routes, and the controlled burn’s towering plume also sent dioxins across 16 states.Vinyl chloride is transported in freight trains that are prone to accidents, and East Palestine was only one in a series of vinyl chloride incidents – experts expect a similar accident. A recent report found more than 3 million Americans live within one mile of railroad tracks on which vinyl chloride is transported.The Vinyl Institute, which represents vinyl chloride and PVC producers, has downplayed the risk, and labeled the reports “publicity stunts”.The EPA’s announcement concludes a year-long period in which it gathered comments from industry, public health advocates, labor and others involved in the substances’ use, as is required under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), which covers the nation’s use of toxic chemicals.It will spend the next three months gathering more information, and, following that, determine whether to classify the chemicals as high-priority substances under TSCA. That would trigger a formal study to determine if vinyl chloride presents an unreasonable risk to human health or the environment.That assessment could take three years, and, following that, the EPA would establish new rules. But the action faces an uncertain future – incoming Trump allies have already signaled that they will kill any proposed regulations that have not been finalized.Opposition from industry against PVC limits is expected to be stiff in part because the substance is used in medical devices, vinyl siding for buildings, drinking water pipes, electrical wiring, household goods like shower curtains and raincoats. Industry groups have already touted the substance’s ubiquity in a statement on the EPA’s announcement.“[It] presents a welcome opportunity to share our expertise on the many indispensable uses of this highly regulated material,” the Vinyl Institute wrote.

Chemicals
Food
Health

Rewriting History: King Solomon’s Mines Proven Clean by Modern Science

A groundbreaking study from Tel Aviv University dispels long-standing myths about King Solomon’s Mines, revealing that ancient copper production in Timna Valley caused minimal and localized environmental harm. Researchers used advanced geochemical surveys to determine that pollution levels were far lower than previously assumed and posed no danger to ancient or modern populations. This discovery [...]

A groundbreaking study from Tel Aviv University dispels long-standing myths about King Solomon’s Mines, revealing that ancient copper production in Timna Valley caused minimal and localized environmental harm. Researchers used advanced geochemical surveys to determine that pollution levels were far lower than previously assumed and posed no danger to ancient or modern populations. This discovery [...]

Chemicals
Pollution

Toxic “forever chemicals” could be entering your body from smart watch bands, study finds

New research finds toxins used to make some brands of smart watch wrist straps are able to seep through the skin

Most people who own a smart watch or fitness watch use a band made of synthetic rubber to hold the device on their wrist. Although the bands are designed to feel comfortable against the skin, a recent study in the journal Environmental Science & Technology Letters found that they may be harmful. This is due to the substances they are made from — known as fluoroelastomers — which can contain large quantities of a dangerous so-called “forever chemical” known as perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA); it is unclear the extent to which this can be absorbed through the skin. PFHxA belongs to a classification of industrial products known as per and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which do not biodegrade and resist breaking down after exposure to water and light, hence the nickname forever chemicals. They have been linked to extreme health problems like cancer, high blood pressure and infertility. Despite these risks, PFAS are widely used in products like non-stick cookware, umbrellas, cosmetics, furniture, cleaning chemicals, water-resistant fabrics and stain-resistant coatings. PFHxA specifically is commonly used in pizza boxes, rain jackets, firefighting foam and waterproofing sprays. While the scientists behind the study weren’t originally looking for PFHxA, the forever chemical “was the most frequently detected compound” within the 22 watch bands analyzed across numerous brands and price points. Lead author Graham F. Peaslee, a physicist at the University of Notre Dame, told Salon that the researchers had not even been aware that PFAS were used in the watch bands until they saw a full-page ad touting them for being made of fluoroelastomer. "The good news is that the consumer can opt for alternative wrist bands to avoid potential PFAS exposure risks." “We realized that the general public didn't recognize fluoroelastomers as a type of PFAS,” Peaslee said. “Like all other forms of polymeric PFAS, we suspected that these materials would also have ‘other’ PFAS readily available together with the fluoropolymer, and we searched for 20 common PFAS.” That’s when they found the surprisingly high concentrations of PFHxA, a forever chemical that can enter the body after being eaten, inhaled, consumed through drinking or absorbed through the skin. “This was unique in the sense that it was the first time we had found only one PFAS, and that it was at such high concentrations — much higher than we typically find in consumer products,” Peaslee said. While the scientists didn’t test this with humans, they still reported that the high levels of PFAS in these products “poses an opportunity for significant transfer to the dermis [skin] and subsequent human exposure. Additionally, several of these watch bands were advertised as ‘sports and fitness’ monitors, implying that the wearer may be exercising with them, which means additional sweat contact and open skin pores.” Want more health and science stories in your inbox? Subscribe to Salon's weekly newsletter Lab Notes. Importantly, Peaslee noted that this is one instance in which a forever chemical was not necessary to include as an ingredient. “There were many wrist bands available that don't use PFAS and without concern for the toxic shorter-chain PFAS that can be in direct contact with the consumer's skin,” Peaslee said. “The good news is that the consumer can opt for alternative wrist bands to avoid potential PFAS exposure risks.” He added, “It is just a question of knowing that they are present — and it is possible to avoid those with fluoroelastomer materials.” In addition to PFHxA, the nearly endless varieties of PFAS include perfluorooctanoic sulfonic acid (PFOS), hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA, commonly known as GenX Chemicals), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) and perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA). As of 2019, there were more than 4,700 documented PFAS, even though most of them perform the same basic function — making products more resistant to stains, grease and other kinds of damage. According to Dr. Anna Reade, senior scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), chemical engineers have created this wide variety of forever chemicals to engage in a practice known as “regrettable substitution.” When certain forever chemicals face increased regulation or notoriety, manufacturers try to have their cake and eat it too (often successfully) by swapping out the specifically banned compound for a slightly different alternative. "There are two really good examples that are supported by just a ton of evidence now," Reade told Salon in July, mentioning the two different PFAS known as PFOA (which was used to make teflon) and PFOS (which was used to make Scotchgard). "When those came under scrutiny, one of the big substitutions was to use a four-carbon version of PFOS instead,” Reade said. “What they did was they just used a different chain length, exactly the same molecule, but just a shorter version of it, a smaller version." The final result was that "they switched to that and said it was safe because there wasn't any data on it," Reade said. The practice of engaging in regrettable substitution is still prevalent today.

Chemicals
Health
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Bag It

Bag It examines our society’s use and abuse of plastic. The theme of the film focuses on plastic as it relates to our society’s throw away mentality, our culture of convenience, and our over consumption of throwaway products and packaging—things that we use one time and then, without another thought, we throw them away. Bag It offers a candid view of the disturbing realities of our culture. And, it suggests concrete solutions to our plastic addiction. The film will raise public awareness on the many issues related to plastic and inspire change, both on the individual level and on the public policy level.

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