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http://www.noccawood.ca/
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NEW WEB SITE ESTABLISHED FOR INFORMATION ON CHROMATED COPPER ARSENATE
(CCA) AND ITS USE AS A WOOD PRESERVATIVE
EPA has posted a new Web site to provide background information on chromated
copper arsenate (CCA), a chemical mixture consisting of arsenic, chromium, and copper
which is registered for wood preservative uses. This Web site provides a variety of EPA's
consumer resource documents, recent press releases, and relevant links. Examples include:
* Commonly-asked questions about CCA's uses as a wood preservative;
* Information for consumers and builders on minimizing risk when working with
CCA-treated wood;
* Information on EPA's health and environmental safety review of CCA, including
children's exposure from playground equipment; and,
* Industry and Federal efforts to increase awareness about safer use and
handling of CCA-treated wood.
EPA will continue to update this Web site to address new developments and
opportunities for public participation. Please review this new CCA
Web site at www.epa.gov/pesticides/citizens/1file.htm.
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You can get the whole following article (48 sites) by email-attachment from the author
(E-mail deborahbarrie@hotmail.com )
or from SAFER WORLD info@safer-world.org
COPPER CHROMIUM ARSENATE (CCA) IN THE ENVIRONMENT
By Deborah Elaine Barrie
COPPER CHROMIUM ARSENATE (CCA) IN THE ENVIRONMENT
INTRODUCTION
Copper chromium arsenate (CCA) is a substance used to treat wood to produce
pressure treated wood. This chemically treated wood is dangerous to the environment and
can cause health damage and death in both human and animal life. It is composed of known
chemical carcinogens. I have compiled the information in this report in the hopes of not
only educating the public on the adherent dangers of CCA treated-wood but also in the hope
of persuading governments to outlaw its use or at the very least restrict it. There are
safer alternatives available, pressure treated wood (CCA) is unnecessary and dangerous. It
is widely misused and abused by both those who are ignorant of its potential dangers and
those who are knowledgeable of these facts. Given the enormous amounts produced each year,
and the impact on our communities, it is imperative that we act quickly. Arsenic never
breaks down into a safe component. This problem will not go away. As one who has suffered
from the misuse of this product, I ask you to join me in informing others, so that they
will not have to face the ordeal that my family, and countless others, have been put
through.
WHAT IS CCA TREATED-WOOD AND ARE THE CHEMICALS LOCKED IN
"Among building materials, wood is ideal: beautiful, strong, easily shaped. And
it’s renewable. Its one big flaw is vulnerability to decay and insects. For
centuries, builders resorted to oily smelly solutions like creosote to make wood more
durable. Then in the 1930's, scientists found a way to infuse wood with a solution that
included copper (toxic to the fungi that cause rot) and arsenic (then the most common
insecticide). To ensure the protection would last, and builders and the environment
wouldn’t be hurt, they also added chromium. It triggered a chemical reaction that
locked the pesticides into the wood."1 "The raw lumber is placed in a pressure
cylinder where a vacuum sucks air and water from the wood cells. The cylinders are then
filled with a mixture of water and pesticides and pressure is increased to refill the
wood’s cells with the mixture. As the wood dries, the chemicals are trapped
inside."2
"The formula became known as chromated copper arsenate, or just CCA. But the industry
called it pressure treated because the chemicals were injected under great pressure. The
wood dried with a green tint because of the copper, but otherwise it was similar to
ordinary lumber, except that it stood up to even the dampest, warmest climates."1
during the pressure treatment up to 250 liters of CCA solution per cubic meter of wood is
applied, resulting in copper (CU), chromium (CR), and arsenic (AS) concentrations in the
range of 1000-5000 mg/kg. In the United States more than 10 million cubic meters of CCA
treated wood is produced each year.3
The following chart shows the three formulas used for CCA, B being the most common.
Table 1 Composition of CCA-Type A, B, and C (AWPA, 1996)4
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You can get the whole article (48 sites) by email-attachment from the author( E-mail
deborahbarrie@hotmail.com ) or from SAFER WORLD:(info@safer-world.org)
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