Monday, January 22, 2007

Acid Copper Chromate (ACC) Residential Uses Won’t be Registered

January 8, 2007

EPA is taking legal action to deny all applications for registration of acid copper chromate, known as ACC, as a wood preservative pesticide intended for residential use. ACC contains hexavalent chromium, which is a skin irritant and sensitizer and a known human carcinogen when inhaled.

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Henry S. Cole & Associates provided scientific support to Chemical Specialties Incorporated / Viance (CSI).CSI was the first company to invest in an arsenic-free and chromium-free wood preservative. This preservative is called ACQ and contains copper and a widely used disinfectant known as Quat. In 2002, Cole was co-recipient of EPA's Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award with CSI, for his work in support of ACQ.
Cole Associates opposed the registration
of Acid Copper Chromate (ACC) which contains highly toxic hexavalent chromium, a known human carcinogen (an agent linked to cancer). Cole and Associates worked closely with lobbying efforts of the Ferguson group- a Washington DC government affairs firm. Because ACC is cheaper than ACQ, its registration for residential purposes would have undercut ACQ's place in the market and introduced millions of pounds of hexavalent chromium into decks, fences, picnic tables, and playground equipment. CSI's ACQ is free of carcinogens.Henry S. Cole & Associates conducted extensive research and provided comments for CSI on EPA's docket. Dr. Cole also presented the technical case against ACC at several meetings with EPA officials. As EPA's announcement shows, EPA decided against registering hexavalent chromium-based ACC for residential purposes.
These comments and additional information on EPA's decision including comments from environmental organizations can be found on the Internet as follows:
1) www.regulations.gov.
2. Click on "advanced search" in the upper left corner, select "docket search"
3. Under Agency, select "Environmental Protection Agency"
4. For docket ID, enter "opp-2006-0606"
5. Click on submit (lower right-hand corner).
6. The docket number should come up (EPA-HQ-OPP-2006-0606).
7. To access the documents in this docket, click on the docket number.