The Chicago Tribune
CHICAGO — Last year, the Chicago Tribune exposed the serious health risks posed by ordinary household furniture that is chock full of fire retardant chemicals that don’t provide meaningful fire protection. These chemicals have been linked to cancer, neurological deficits, developmental problems and impaired fertility. They escape from furniture and settle in dust. That’s especially dangerous for toddlers, who play on the floor and stick things in their mouths.
The Tribune series, “Playing With Fire,” showed how an outrageous confluence of industry manipulation and government neglect created this hazard for the public, ironically in the name of keeping people safer.
The series, which inspired a recent HBO documentary, “Toxic Hot Seat,” is leading to some important changes in safety regulation.
Credit California officials. For decades, U.S. manufacturers have filled upholstered furniture with toxic fire retardants to meet a flammability standard set by California. That state’s rule, known as Technical Bulletin 117, ushered flame retardants into millions of American homes. American babies now are born with the highest recorded average concentrations of the chemicals in the world.
Last month, California tossed out the 38-year-old rule after the Tribune documented how the chemical and tobacco industries deceptively promoted the value of flame retardants. Government and independent research shows the chemicals do not offer meaningful protection from furniture fires.
California officials approved a new standard that furniture manufacturers can meet without using flame retardants. The new rule, to be phased in starting Jan. 1, requires upholstery fabric to resist a smoldering cigarette — which is the largest cause of furniture fires, the Tribune’s Sam Roe and Michael Hawthorne reported.
The new rule is modeled in part after a voluntary standard adopted by the furniture industry that found specially designed furniture fabric is far more effective at preventing fires than flame retardants added to the foam padding.
That rule now becomes a template for the rest of the country. Illinois and many other states mirror California’s furniture flammability standards.
One note of caution: The updated rule does not ban the chemicals. Manufacturers have said they expect to stop adding the chemicals to furniture foam. Eventually consumers will be able to shop for couches and other upholstered furniture with confidence that the products are free of flame retardants.
For now, it’s a good idea to ask sales reps in the showroom: Does this couch meet new standards for safety? How about that high chair or crib mattress?
“While many manufacturers may elect to remove the chemicals, others may elect to leave them in due to concerns about liability,” said Judy Levin of the Center for Environmental Health. “So consumers will definitely have to be diligent and ask specific questions.”
Companies will act if enough customers demand a safer product.
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