Q: Who says PVC materials are safe and/or environmentally benign?
A: The following are among the many organizations that have conducted scientific studies and life cycle assessments on PVC that have arrived at neutral or positive conclusions regarding the comparative health, safety and/or environmental sustainability of PVC production, installation, use and disposal:
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- U.K. Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
- European Chemicals Bureau (ECB) of the European Commission
- California EPA, Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL)
- New York State Energy Research & Development Authority (NYSERDA)
- Midwest Research Institute
- British Board of Agrement (BBA)
- American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
- Swedish Environmental Protection Agency
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
- Technical and Scientific Advisory Committee (TSAC) of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)
- European Single-Ply Waterproofing Association (ESWA)
- Carbotech AG independent environmental consultants
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
- Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO – Australia’s premier scientific organization)
- U.S. National Academy of Sciences – The Institute of Medicine (IOM)
- American Council on Science and Health (ACSH)
- Greenspirit Strategies
Q: What about concerns that PVC production results in deadly emissions of dioxin, ethylene dichloride and vinyl chloride, causing health problems among PVC workers and nearby communities?
A: According to the EPA, since adoption of a closed-loop manufacturing process in the mid-1970s vinyl chloride emissions in vinyl plants have been reduced by 99 percent and dioxin emissions from all sources have been reduced by 92 percent. During the same time frame, PVC production in the U.S. more than tripled. In 1997, CDC reported that the PVC industry had “almost completely eliminated worker exposures to vinyl chloride” as well as the incidence of cancer and other illnesses caused by exposure. More recent studies by ATSDR and others have shown that dioxin levels and the incidence of cancer in communities near PVC production facilities are no higher than the national average.
