"The draft finding from the state's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment found that the chemicals may pose an estimated cancer risk more than 10 times higher than benzene, a serious carcinogen linked to leukemia and other cancers. It is the first step in a review process before the final risk values are adopted."
""If the early air monitoring results bear out, and if the draft cancer values developed are close to what eventually becomes final, then each air contaminant poses an unacceptable cancer risk," said Kris Thayer, OEHHA's director."
"The update reflects the state's evolving understanding of its most dangerous pollutants, which has shifted over the decades from visible pollutants, such as smog, to more invisible ones that cause cancer, heart disease and other health harms."
"It comes only two months after the Trump administration's Environmental Protection Agency moved to roll back standards on ethylene oxide, or EtO, in an effort to save millions of dollars in compliance costs for facilities that use the chemical for medical sterilization."
California environmental health officials released draft findings for acrolein and ethylene oxide in ambient air. The chemicals may pose estimated cancer risks more than 10 times higher than benzene, a known carcinogen linked to leukemia and other cancers. The values are preliminary and are part of a review process before final risk values are adopted. The update reflects changing understanding of dangerous pollutants, shifting focus from visible smog to invisible contaminants that contribute to cancer, heart disease, and other harms. The announcement follows federal action to roll back ethylene oxide standards for industrial users and follows a national report showing most Californians live in counties with unhealthy air.
Read at Los Angeles Times
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