Driveway sealants linked to cancer risk

By Tony Iallonardo, Communications Director

Thinking back to childhood summers, I remember that almost every year my
dad would buy five gallon buckets of blacktop sealant to tidy up the wear on
our driveway from New England winters. Then my brothers and I would spend
months running on the stuff, often barefoot. Wow, was that a bad idea.

According
to a shocking report from the federal U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), “Living
adjacent to coal tar sealed pavement is
estimated to increase excess lifetime cancer risk 38 times, and much of the increased risk occurs during early childhood.”

These
driveway sealants emit highly toxic pollutant, known as polycyclic aromatic
hydrocarbons (PAHs). In layman’s terms, toxic chemicals in the black goo get
released into soil, stick to our shoes, and go airborne as dust particles where
they eventually make their way into us. Most exposures occur by breathing the
stuff.

According to the Wisconsin
Department of Public Health, most PAHs in the
environment are from incomplete burning of carbon-containing materials like
oil, wood, garbage or coal. They can be found in a variety of products,
including mothballs, creosote wood preservatives, and even some skin creams and
anti-dandruff shampoos that contain coal tars. Currently, there is no standard
for how much PAHs can or should be in our homes.

Predictably,
the industry denies there’s a problem and has resisted moving down a path of
using safer chemicals; they’ve even questioned studies like those from the
USGS, and are actively lobbying to stop cities and states from switching to
safer products. USA Today reported last week that chemical companies
have killed bills in Maine, Illinois, Michigan and Maryland and in several cities,
such as Des Plaines, Illinois, and Springfield, Missouri.

There
is a bright spot amidst sticky gunk – retailers are stepping in.

Quietly,
and without much fanfare, major chains like Home Depot, Lowes, and Ace Hardware banned
these products from their shelves, and stuck with safer alternatives like
asphalt. Those steps have, paved the way for many cities to phase out the goop as
well.

These
quiet but noteworthy steps by retailers confirm what we already know: retailers
are major players in the consumer marketplace and have a big opportunity to
shift us towards safer chemicals. That’s exactly why we’ve launched the Mind the Store
campaign, to ask the nation’s top ten retailers to get tough on toxic
chemicals.

So
far, we’ve sent tens of thousands of emails to the retailers asking them to
create a comprehensive approach to dealing with chemicals, rather than going
product by product.

What
can you do? Join our Mind the Store campaign, and ask
retailers to phase out our list of Hazard 100+ toxic chemicals. 

Another
action step is to sign a petition to urge the EPA to
establish a nationwide ban on the use of coal tar sealant.

Related posts:

• Information on the Hazardous 100+
• Toxic turfs?
• Retail therapy