November 22nd, 1998

Who's In Charge, Anyway?
By Jackie Alan Giuliano, Ph.D.

Most of us probably think that after careful studies report something is harmful to our bodies or the ecosystem, an environmental regulation comes into being that must be enforced. That is a nice idea. Sadly, one piece is missing from the above scenario. In our troubled reality, the regulation will usually only be enforced if the affected business can develop a new way of producing the product without affecting their profit or consumer choices! Health be damned if the business cannot come up with a solution.

(Photo from http://www.environ.wa.gov.au/support/air/air_12.htm A classic example of this backward approach to caring for our health and our world is the paint manufacturing industry. It should come as no surprise that an industry that reported $16.8 billion in sales in 1996 and that claims to employ 58,000 people per year commands considerable power at the bargaining table. Yes, your health is traded at a bargaining table.

The amount of paint used every year in the U.S. alone is staggering - it amounts to 4.8 gallons for every U.S. resident. The worst environmental and health offender of the paint products may be spray paints and other aerosol coating products.

Each day in California alone, spray paints contribute about 21 tons of volatile organic compounds (VOC) to the atmosphere! That amount is twice as much as all the oil refineries.

Reflect on that number for a moment - try to visualize it. Twenty-one tons is 42,000 pounds. That's 7,665 tons a year. That's 15.33 million pounds per year. That's the weight of about 4,380 passenger cars.

Areas of the U.S. out of compliance with federal standards for ozone pollution. Alaska and Hawaii are both in compliance. (Map from http://www.epa.gov/airsweb/mapview.htm)

VOCs are a trigger ingredient for photochemical smog and make their way into the groundwater as well.

VOCs are complex molecules that contain carbon and oxygen. When they are released into the atmosphere, strong sunlight and heat act on them to break them down. In one type of damaging interaction, the oxygen atoms that are released combine with other oxygen atoms to form ozone.

Ozone is a good thing in the stratosphere where it keeps out the majority of the Sun's harmful ultraviolet rays. But on the ground, ozone can be deadly. It is a highly corrosive gas that affects buildings and structures as well as our health. At very low concentrations it can cause eye and nose irritations. At high concentrations, it can cause severe respiratory and cardiovascular problems.

Los Angeles has been out of compliance with federal ozone standards for many years. Twenty-one tons of VOCs per day generates a lot of ozone for California.

These organic compounds provide the means for the paint to get delivered from the can to the object being painted. They provide the fine, even mist that we like from our spray cans.

Shiny rattle by Jackie Giuliano

I know I like it. As an artist, I use glossy sprays to coat my dreamcatchers, gourds, and paintings. I know the hazards, but I have done it anyway. I used a glossy spray just yesterday as I was spraying a rattle I made from a gourd. I knew I was damaging the atmosphere as I was pondering all the spiritual imagery I had drawn and glued on the rattle.

Where do we draw the line? When do we become aware enough? I know that for me, I must draw the line today. I must stop being a contributor to this problem. There are alternatives. And what is wrong with a dull finish anyway? Why does everything have to be shiny in our culture?

In California, though, if a company has a problem complying with a regulation, it is let off the hook. The "Los Angeles Times" reported on November 20, 1998 that the California Air Resources Board has rescinded standards that were to go into effect on December 31, 1999. The deadline has been moved to the year 2002. These standards require the spray paint manufacturers to reduce the VOCs in their products by 60 percent. But, the Times reports, "most popular aerosol paint products would have to be taken off store shelves because no company has found a way to comply."

The article goes on to say that the National Paint Coatings Association is worried that their members will not be able to offer consumers the "wide array of products with different gloss levels, colors, coverages and other characteristics" that they want. So in exchange for continued profit and product availability for two more years, an extra 30.7 million pounds of VOCs will be added to the California atmosphere.

Of course, out of the 1.46 billion pounds of VOCs that will be added to the state's air from all sources during those two years, what's an extra 30.7 million pounds?

VOC sources in the U.S. (Map from http://www.epa.gov/airsweb/mapview.htm)

This approach to environmental management is destined to fail. When corporate profit and product availability are put above health and well being, the true sickness of our society comes out. Yet we must not point the finger too far away from home. Guess who is buying the $16.8 billion worth of paints each year. That's right. It is you and me.

We can decide to use brush paints instead of sprays. We can decide to not have a shiny new paint job on our car. We can decide to insist that the house painter use brushes and not sprays. We can choose to use low or zero-VOC paints. Alternatives abound.

What is in short supply seems to be desire, motivation, and a belief that all the choices we make have a profound effect on our world.

Maybe we do run things after all.

With resources scarcer and scarcer
I vow with all beings
to consider the law of proportion:
my have is another's have-not
-- Robert Aitken

RESOURCES

1. A summary of air pollution sources, health effects, and controls can be found at the California Air Resources Board (CARB) web site at http://www.arb.ca.gov/health/health.htm

2. Visit the American Lung Association's "Health House" web site for great information on creating a lesser toxic home environment at http://www.healthhouse.org/about/default.htm

3. Find out the names of builders who use healthy house techniques in building at http://www.healthhouse.org/build/consumer/register.htm

4. Learn about VOC's and see a mail order catalog for low and zero VOC paints at http://www.gsgs.com/enviro/envirospeak/voc.html

5. See some amazing air pollution photos at http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/3589/airpollution.html

6. More about VOC's can be learned at http://www.cleanair2000.org/vocfs.htm

7. Another eco-sensitive home site is at http://www.schmidtdesign.com/house.htm

8. Some general info on low VOC paints is at http://www.iel.ncsu.edu/onhouse/Onhs0897.htm

9. Go to Australia for details on low VOC paints at http://www.indiweb.com.au/apas/pics/news/news04.html

10. Some information on paint product alternatives is available from the City of Long Beach California at http://www.ci.long-beach.ca.us/irb/chart1.htm

11. Whether you are a hobbyist or a professional, if you have to be around toxic fumes, get a respirator of some kind. Start your research at http://clmc.hypermart.net/products.htm

12. Visit the Sustainable Building Sourcebook for many ideas on less toxic and hazardous building materials at http://www.greenbuilder.com/sourcebook/contents.html

13. Learn about low VOC paints, finishes, and adhesives from http://www.greenbuilder.com/sourcebook/FinishesAdhesives.html

14. Some companies produce low to zero VOC paints. Here are some:

• http://www.studioecology.com/rsources/form/bldmatls/finish/index.html
  
• http://www.babyschoice.com/
  
• http://www.thoreau.org/DESIGN/Paint.html

15. Learn how to use low VOC paints at http://www.asashop.org/autoinc/october/voc.htm 16. Visit an interesting web site by a number of corporations about recycling and alternative products at http://www.1800cleanup.org/

17. Find out who your Congressional representatives are and e-mail them. Tell them to worry more about our health than product availability and business profits. If you know your Zip code, you can find them at http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/ziptoit.html or you can search by state at http://www.webslingerz.com/jhoffman/congress-email.html

18. Learn about the issues. Seek out books on the subject. A good source for used (and new) books is Powell’s Bookstore in Portland, Oregon at http://www.powells.com/cgi-bin/associate?assoc_id=212 where you will find a wonderful alternative to the massive chain bookstores taking over the market.