The Columbus Dispatch
(Ohio)
November 26, 2004
DuPont didn't disclose
reports on teflon risks, officials charge
By Spencer Hunt
Federal officials are again accusing DuPont of illegally withholding information
about the possible health risks of a chemical used to make Teflon.
In July, the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency said DuPont should have reported internal studies showing
perfluorooctanoic acid, also called PFOA or C8, in Ohio River residents'
blood and drinking water.
Because the information
dates back 20 years, DuPont faces fines that could exceed $300 million.
This week, EPA attorneys
said DuPont completed another study in July but didn't report it.
The accusation appeared
in documents filed in an administrative court in Washington.
That could mean more
fines for DuPont, which says that C8 isn't a threat and that it has done
nothing wrong.
"Should the agency
decide to file an additional complaint, we will contest their decision and
defend our position," DuPont said in a statement Wednesday.
The EPA stated its case in a request for a stay filed Monday with Administrative
Law Judge Barbara Gunning.
"EPA will allege
that this new information that DuPont obtained on or about July 29, 2004,
but failed to report to EPA, supports a conclusion of a substantial risk
of injury to human health," federal attorneys wrote.
A study DuPont funded
and received July 29 showed C8 at levels as high as 128 parts per billion
in blood samples from 12 residents of Wood County, W.Va., who live near
DuPont's Washington Works plant.
The average recorded
in people nationwide is 5.6 parts per billion.
DuPont uses C8 to make
Teflon coatings for popular household products, including nonstick pots
and pans, stain-resistant carpets and water-resistant clothing.
Although it has been linked to liver problems in lab rats, researchers are
beginning to examine how C8 affects humans and why it is so pervasive.
Research suggests more
than 90 percent of Americans have traces of C8 in their blood. It has been
found in Mediterranean dolphins, California sea lions and polar bears.
The central issue in
the EPA's case with DuPont is whether the company was legally obligated
to report anything.
The EPA argues that
a 1981 DuPont study, which showed the chemical in human blood, including
that of eight pregnant women and one fetus, should have been reported that
year. The EPA's complaint also covers tests from 1991 that showed C8 in
drinking water.
DuPont contends that
that study and subsequent studies do not show any links to health risks.
The 12 test subjects
were plaintiffs in a 2001 lawsuit filed on behalf of thousands of West Virginia
and Ohio residents near Washington Works. Their water supplies were contaminated
by C8.
Although the study was
completed in July, the EPA got the results in September from plaintiff's
attorney Robert Bilott. Last week, the Environmental Working Group in Washington
sent the EPA a letter urging the agency to consider the new accusation.
The group estimates
that DuPont could pay $300 million or more in EPA fines. In September, the
company promised to pay as much as $343 million to settle the 2001 class-action
lawsuit.
Although the settlement
won't be finalized until Feb. 28, DuPont agreed this week to pay $70 million
for more blood tests for thousands of residents.
The EPA's case remains
on track for a Dec. 16 hearing in Washington.
