Journal article
Common Misconceptions about PCBs Obscure the Crisis of Children's Exposure in School
Environmental science & technology, Vol.56(23), pp.16544-16545
11/18/2022
DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c07943
PMCID: PMC9730834
PMID: 36399046
Appears in UI Libraries Support Open Access
Abstract
Polychlorinated biphenyls make up a set of 209 environmental contaminants that have been subject to a great deal of attention for more than 50 years. They are perhaps the most famous of the Stockholm Convention’s “Dirty Dozen” and the most widely recognized of the chemicals called “Legacy” or “Forever Chemicals”. I have studied PCBs in the environment for more than 30 years, and recently, my collaborators and I have shown that PCBs in school air pose a clear health hazard to children and people who work in schools (Figure 1). We have found that many schools harbor surprisingly high levels of these toxic compounds. We are not alone in noticing the high concentrations of PCBs in schools. Families, teachers, attorneys, and politicians are demanding attention. For example, in October 2022 a jury awarded $275M to 13 children and their families who attended a PCB-contaminated school. In February 2022, Senator Ed Markey and others sent a formal letter to urge the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to support funding to address PCBs in schools. However, a high level of misunderstanding about PCBs persists, even among scientists. These misconceptions are not benign but in fact result in long-term harm to our population. These misconceptions support inaction to protect the public and contribute to an ongoing and highly unjust assault on health. In this article, I identify and debunk eight commonly held opinions about PCBs.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Common Misconceptions about PCBs Obscure the Crisis of Children's Exposure in School
- Creators
- Keri C Hornbuckle - University of Iowa
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Environmental science & technology, Vol.56(23), pp.16544-16545
- DOI
- 10.1021/acs.est.2c07943
- PMID
- 36399046
- PMCID
- PMC9730834
- NLM abbreviation
- Environ Sci Technol
- ISSN
- 0013-936X
- eISSN
- 1520-5851
- Publisher
- American Chemical Society
- Grant note
- DOI: 10.13039/100000066, name: National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, award: P42ES013661; name: Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation, award: 43788
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 11/18/2022
- Academic Unit
- Civil and Environmental Engineering; Occupational and Environmental Health; IIHR--Hydroscience and Engineering; Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Human Toxicology; Iowa Superfund Research Program
- Record Identifier
- 9984319359902771
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