CHICAGO — Major retailers are violating California law by failing to warn consumers about diaper-changing pads, nap mats and other baby products made with unsafe levels of a flame retardant linked to cancer, according to legal notices filed Thursday by an advocacy group.
The notices urged retailers, including Amazon.com Inc., Target Corp. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc., to recall infant and toddler products made with chlorinated Tris, or TDCPP. Researchers have found the flame retardant in upholstered furniture and children's products sold throughout the nation.
In October, California started requiring warning labels on products that could expose people to harmful amounts of chlorinated Tris. The Center for Environmental Health, an Oakland-based nonprofit that uses legal action to force toxic chemicals out of household products, tested 19 children's products bought in stores and online after the state's deadline.
California added chlorinated Tris to its Proposition 65 list of cancer-causing chemicals last year after federal officials said they were largely powerless to do anything about the flame retardant. Under the federal Toxic Substances Control Act, it is nearly impossible for regulators to ban chemicals even after health effects are documented.
Sixteen of the tested items, which also included crib mattresses and nursery furniture, were found to contain chlorinated Tris, said the Center for Environmental Health, which filed the legal notices. None of the items had a warning label.
In one rocking chair, the chemical represented almost 10% of the weight of the foam, according to tests the group commissioned from an independent laboratory. Levels in most products ranged between 3% and 6% — well above the safety limit established under California's Proposition 65 law on toxic chemicals, the legal notices allege.
"It's past time for companies to take steps towards eliminating these harmful chemicals from products for our children and families," said Michael Green, the group's executive director.
A Wal-Mart spokeswoman said the company had not seen the complaint but "consistently seeks to comply with all Proposition 65 requirements." Target said it "is committed to abiding by state and federal laws and regulations, and we expect our vendors to do the same." Amazon did not respond to an email request for comment.
After a study linked chlorinated Tris to cancer in the late 1970s, manufacturers voluntarily took the chemical out of children's pajamas. But the flame retardant wasn't formally banned.
Like other chemical flame retardants, chlorinated Tris is known to escape from products and settle in dust. Because young children play on the floor and often put things in their mouths, they generally have higher levels of flame retardants in their bodies than their parents.
mhawthorne@tribune.com
Retailers failing to warn of carcinogen in baby items, group says
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Retailers failing to warn of carcinogen in baby items, group says
