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February 23, 2005

Perfluorooctanoic Acid

INDUSTRY TO CUT USE OF PFOA DERIVATIVE: The fluoropolymer industry agreed February 9th to cut the amount of a potentially toxic chemical in some of its products significantly by 2006, as part of a broad EPA push to reduce environmental exposure. The Society of the Plastics Industry announced at an EPA hearing in Washington that the industry will cut levels of the chemical, a derivative of perfluorooctanoic acid, by 90% from 2000 levels. The agreement covers aqueous fluoropolymer dispersions -- fluoropolymers sold in a water-based material that makes it easier to coat products needing a tough outer barrier, from nonstick frying pans to roofs of airports to military and aerospace applications, said Don Duncan, president of Washington-based SPI. EPA is cracking down on PFOA because it mysteriously has shown up in low levels in the blood of large segments of the U.S. population, and some studies indicate links to cancer and other health problems. But whether it is harmful to the general public is a subject for debate -- a preliminary EPA review last month was inconclusive. As part of the February 9th agreement, Duncan said the fluoropolymer resin industry has developed technology to reduce the amount of ammonium perfluorooctanoate (APFO), a derivative of PFOA, in resins used in the dispersion process. It will work to get the new low-APFO resin widely distributed to the fluoropolymer processing industry, he said. Duncan predicts that the low-APFO resins will not cost more and will be widely used, but noted that many companies using the resins will need to get them re-qualified with their customers, since they are often used in high-performance applications with strict manufacturing controls. Plastics News, 02/14/05, p. 5.

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