Pressure Treated Lumber "Cover Up" Nixed By FDA

Despite several missteps, the FDA did one of it's all-too-infrequent pirouettes in the right direction yesterday by denying The Forestry Product's Research Coucil's plea to keep the product ACC (acid copper chromate) from public sale. ACC has been touted as a "protective liquid covering" to be applied to the now (since 2004) banned use of CCA of chromium copper arsenic-treated lumber. Better known as pressure treated lumber. The supposition was that the ACC treatment would "contain" the toxicity presoaked into the pressure treated lumber. The industry had viewed the ACC as a cheaper substitute than what is currently being used. Perhaps. "But at what cost?", asked Jim Jones, head of EPA's pesticide office. The Agency decided the price was too high and the EPA REJECTED ACC

Through urging and protests from environmental groups, ACC was ultimately determined by the agency urging to be loaded with huge health risks, including skin irritation to homeowners, children and contractors working with the preservative. Not the least of which was cancer due to the particularly high concentration of a toxic form of chromate, hexavalent chromium, also known as chromium 6, is a known human carcinogen. The dangers and risks increased especially to workers directly applying the ACC to existing CCA structures and those workers who process the ACC lumber.

So don't let any Big Box or hardware dude or landscape/contractor try and sell you on this stuff. If they try to unload it on you to lighten their inventory or tell you "it's safe", you now know to tell them they are most definitely wrong and defying the ban...and you can back it up with a copy of the story in The Washington Post.