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sometime this year.
<br /> Scott Wolfson, spokesperson for the
<br />CPSC says the organization is especially
<br />interested in backyard playgrounds
<br />where it has jurisdiction, and the rec-
<br />ommendations will reflect that.
<br /> "It~ being studied on the technical
<br />side as to the actual levels of potential
<br />arsenic that come from that wood and
<br />the health effect on children," says
<br />Wolfson. "CPSC'S jurisdiction would be
<br />in the area of prospective guidelines -
<br />not necessarily retrospective guidelines.'l,
<br />Wdre talking about a scientific finding
<br />by CPSC staff with a recommendation to
<br />our commissioners, who would then
<br />make a final decision, which is really
<br />open right now for many different deci-
<br />sions to possibly be made."
<br />
<br />unhealthy doses o¢ arsenic through used on treated wood. park that blended well in ~he natural
<br />touching or handling dCA-treated wood Meanwhee, the EPA is not currently emdronmen[ but it was a small one"
<br />is still under debate, recommending that parks tear do~ g~ne says they also replaced their
<br /> According to the Consumer pta7 s[~ctures that have dCA-treated tre~ted-wood bleachers, but mosdy
<br />Product 5aEry Commission (CPSC) the wood. because they were high-maintenance
<br />~at~er is still open as they continue to "A certain a~ount,~lt be replaced annas An od sealant was used on pie
<br />conduct research with an eye toward as it wears out and that .
<br />releasing official recommendations attrition should take '~'. ;, ~., ~'~, ..
<br /> care of any concerns," ~ _ ',~.~t~:'
<br />
<br /> fire t~e of situation." . ,~~l~'~
<br /> Kovacs says the
<br /> treated-wood industw
<br />
<br /> dCA-treated wood in
<br /> favor of alternate pre-
<br /> sedative treatments by
<br /> December 2003 for all
<br /> lumber uses, including
<br /> p[ayground systems. The City of dainesvifle recently replaced its dCA-treated wood
<br /> Manufacturers of playgrounds with new systems. ~o~o ~ ~oa~, u~c,[m
<br />
<br />· The/umber industry has voluntarily moved
<br />to alternate chemicals for treating wood.
<br />Playground manufacturers and suppliers
<br />have generally followed suit.
<br />
<br />Of course the CPSC's findings,
<br />though geared toward backyard play-
<br />grounds, will be studied with interest by
<br />those who use the wood for other similar
<br />purposes, particularly park playgrounds.
<br />To keep abreast of the CPSC'S find-
<br />ings, go to wwm, cpsc.gov. There's a spe-
<br />cial Playgrounds link in the Popular/New
<br />area of the site. There's also a QO.A sec-
<br />'don, which includes sealants that can be
<br />
<br />treated wood play-
<br />ground systems and lumber yards are
<br />generally following the lead of the treat-
<br />ed wood industry as a whole, and mov-
<br />ing toward alternate treatments, like
<br />ACQ. Check with manufacturers to find
<br />out what they're doing.
<br />
<br />Gainesville's Decision
<br /> Cases of parks tearing dow-n treat-
<br />ed-wood structures appear to be few.
<br />One of those few cases is in Gainesville,
<br />Fla., after city commissioners voted to
<br />have them removed.
<br /> Pat Byrne, division manager for parks
<br />for the City of Gaine~sville, says they
<br />researched it and prodded as much infor-
<br />mation as they could, including soil tests.
<br /> The soft tests revealed devated lev-
<br />els of arsenic, with the higher concen-
<br />trations near newer structures, which
<br />naturally leach more chemicals.
<br /> "If you were listening to the dCA
<br />lobbyists, the stuff was fine, and if you lis-
<br />tened to some of the environmentalists, it
<br />wasn't. We went ahead and took a proac-
<br />tive approach,.. One of the conveniences,
<br />if you will, for us, is that we didn't have
<br />much o£ it. We only had three units," says
<br />Byme. "We had three play structures
<br />removed, and two were probably placed
<br />i~ the '7Os. They should have been
<br />replaced anyway. We had one in a major
<br />
<br />nic tables, benches, boardwalk areas and
<br />handrails as recommended by the coun-
<br />t7 EPA.
<br /> "What the information led me to
<br />believe was that the folks most suscepti-
<br />ble were the ones who were carpenters
<br />and mills working with wood, not wear-
<br />ing masks and breathing in the sawdust.
<br />That stood out more than anything else,"
<br />says Byrne. "Not having the scientific
<br />background or recommending that we
<br />should be spending thousands of dollars
<br />with local engineering firms to do all this
<br />testing, our recommendation was, that
<br />although the information is mixed and
<br />confusing, if there is a remote chance that
<br />a child could be adversely affected the
<br />prudent option would be to replace and
<br />move on."
<br /> A policy has also been established
<br />that'the city will no longer purchase any
<br />wood treated with CCA. BFrne reports
<br />that they're finding alternate wood treat-
<br />ments readily available and comparably
<br />priced.
<br />
<br />{ www.pmksandmebusi ....... m I &ugust 2002 { PARI(S&I:~EC BUSINESS I'~
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