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Regulating Chemicals
Do we do enough in the U.S. to regulate chemicals in consumer products? The European Union will soon enforce legislation that will require chemical companies to scientifically prove that all of their products are safe. Should the U.S. do the same?
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More from KQED
Current Episode
Thu, Dec 18, 2008 -- 8:00 PM
Health Dialogues: Holiday Health - Chemicals in our Gifts
It's holiday gift-giving time. Remember all those toy recalls? California and the federal government both have new laws banning certain chemicals, but they don't go into effect until the new year. Join Health Dialogues as we navigate the murky waters of healthy gift giving this holiday season.
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Host: Scott Shafer
Segment 1: A Sea of Chemicals
Most of us have little idea what chemicals are in the things that we buy. We think government safeguards us, regulating things like lead in toys. That much is true. But what about the more than 80,000 chemicals used in manufacturing today? As it turns out, almost all of them are completely unstudied and unregulated.
Guests:
- Dr. Mike Wilson, PhD, environmental health scientist with the School of Public Health, UC Berkeley.
Segment 2: The Secrets in Makeup
The Food and Drug Administration was created to protect Americans from dangers in consumer products. But lobbyists succeeded in leaving cosmetics explicitly out of the FDA's reach. Today, no one uses more of those potentially dangerous products than teenage girls. From KPBS, Kenny Goldberg reports.
Segment 3: Chemicals and You / The U.S. vs. The European Union
The FDA and EPA are supposed to be protecting us from potential health and environmental risks. How good a job are they doing? Host Scott Shafer put that question to a couple of journalists who cover the issue.
Guests:
- Mark Schapiro, editorial director of the Center for Investigative Reporting, and author of "Exposed: The Toxic Chemistry of Everyday Products and What's at Stake for American Power"
- Sarah Varney, KQED health reporter
Segment 4: Green Chemistry - Government and Industry Weigh In
Here in California, the agency charged with protecting public health and the environment from toxic chemicals is the Department of Toxic Substances Control, part of the California EPA. Host Scott Shafer speaks with the DTSC and the chemical industry about the Green Chemistry movement in California.
Guests:
- Maureen Gorsen, director of the Department of Toxic Substances Control at the California EPA
- Tim Shesteck, director of state affairs and grass roots for the American Chemistry Council
Segment 5: What Happens to E-Waste?
We've heard a lot about the things we use and how they can harm us. But the potential hazard doesn't end once we throw our products away. In fact, in the case of e-waste (electronic gadgets like cell phones and i-Pods), disposal is where the problem often begins. Join Scott Shafer on a trip to the San Francisco dump.
Segment 6: Green Toys
All these green chemistry initiatives in California raise the question: what would consumer products look like in this new world of green chemistry? KQED health reporter Sarah Varney found one company who just might have the answer.
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About Health Dialogues
Health Dialogues is a special series from KQED's "The California Report" that facilitates an ongoing discussion of California health care issues that are important to the underserved: children, low-income residents, minorities, and people with disabilities to name just a few.
Underwritten by a grant from
The California Endowment
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