newsies, 5-11 oct. '97

[ttweed@wildrockies.org (Tony Tweedale)]

            "Lake Charles, Louisiana [Across the USA]."  USA Today, 9 October
            97, 11A.
                 Conoco agreed to settle a class action lawsuit filed by
                 Mossville residents who claim the company polluted area
                 groundwater with ethylene dichloride [scavenger to prevent
  corrosion by leaded gas; why Pd'ed gas creates pcdd/f etc.].  The
  settlement will
                 cost a minimum of $15 million with a cap of $30 million.
  
  
            "HRT and Breast Cancer [Findings]."  Washington Post, 10 October
            97, A2.
                 Valerie Beral of the Imperial Cancer Research Fund in London
                 led a study that found hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can
                 increase a woman's chances of getting breast cancer by 2.3
                 percent per year.  The study appears in _The Lancet_ [no
                 citation given].
  
  
  
  the AP ran a 20 p'graph story that was picked up in our small newspaper, too:
  
  Greenpeace Cites Vinyl as Hazard in 28 Toys.  The Washington
  Post, October 10, 1997, pG3.
  
       The environmental organization Greenpeace has released a
  list of vinyl products for children that it says contain high
  levels of lead and cadmium.  The US Consumer Product Safety
  Commission has said that the products passed its tests for
  safety.
       Toy sellers and manufacturers have called Greenpeace's
  action a misguided attempt to gain attention and boost its waning
  membership. "Here we have a lot of people who are trying to raise
  funds and reestablish themselves," said David Miller, president
  of Toy Manufacturers of America. "It's bad business to make
  dangerous toys - we just don't do it."
       The toys in question are made out of polyvinyl chloride
  (PVC). Previously, the CPSC had worked with miniblind
  manufacturers to voluntarily remove vinyl miniblinds containing
  PVC from the market because of reports of lead poisoning in
  children.  But the CPSC says that the products listed by
  Greenpeace don't pose the same risks because they aren't likely
  to be exposed to as much direct sunlight and heat as miniblinds
  are.  It is this factor that causes the material to deteriorate
  and pose a threat to children.
       Greenpeace initially studied plasticizer products used in
  soft toys, such as teething rings.  They found that some of the
  products contained high levels of phthalates, which have been
  linked to liver and kidney disorders and other health problems.
  Greenpeace then expanded the study to include 131 toys and
  children's products such as backpacks and umbrellas. The study
  tried to determine the risk of exposure to lead and cadmium of
  children who chewed, sucked, or handled the toys.  The
  independent laboratories that conducted the study for Greenpeace
  found that almost one-fifth of the products contained dangerous
  levels of lead.
       The CPSC tested 11 of the products that had been found to be
  dangerous by Greenpeace and found opposite results.  Greenpeace
  said that the CPSC tests did not replicate the scientific methods
  used by Greenpeace.
  
  
  ** The above story was also covered in: **
  
  Lead Content is Found High In Plastic Items.  The New York Times,
  October 10, 1997, pA15.