Cumuli catl o« ad;
pifclic Affairs
(A-107)
»ERA Environmental News
FOR RELEASE: WEDNESDAY, KAY 22, 1991
MERCURY USE IN EXTERIOR PAINTS AND COATINGS CANCELLED
Al Heier 202-382-4374
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today that
it has received requests for the voluntary cancellation of the only
two remaining pesticide registrations which permit the use of
mercury in the production of exterior paint and coatings. The
cancellation • requests vera...made. . by - Cosan -Chemical- Corp. of
Carlstadt, N.J. and Troy Chemical Corp. of Newark, N.J., and go
into effect 31 days after publication in the Federal Register.
After the cancellations take effect, all registrations for the
use of mercury in paints and coatings both interior and exterior,
will be cancelled. Mercury has not been allowed in the
manufacturing of interior paint since Aug. 20, 1990.
EPA's current review of the use of mercury compounds in paint
began in 1990 after a report of acrodynia (a rare form of childhood
mercury poisoning) and an investigation of the incident by the
Centers for Disease Control and the state of Michigan. in that
incident, the paint which had been used contained three times the
amount of mercury normally used to preserve interior paint.
As part of 1990 actions on the continued registration of
mercury in exterior paints, Cosan Chemical Corp. and Troy Chemical
Corp. were required to conduct studies needed by EPA to better
assess the risks associated with continued use of mercury in
exterior paints. The registrants subsequently failed to meet many
of the mandatory deadlines for data development, which ultimately
led to the requests for voluntary cancellation.
In July, 1990, EPA estimated that 20 to 30 percent of outdoor
paint products contained mercury. Since that time, industry
United States
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sources indicate that the use of mercury in exterior paints has
declined. Cosan Chemical Corp. will be permitted to sell existing
stocks of its product until Sept. 30, 1991. Troy Chemical Corp.,
which first requested voluntarily cancellation in Nov., 1990, will
be permitted to sell its product until June 27, 1991. Manu-
facturers of exterior paints and coatings who are holding stocks of
the two products to be cancelled will be permitted to use up those
stocks. Since Aug., 1990, EPA has required exterior paints
containing mercury to be so labeled and to carry a warning
statement to alert persons using these paints.
Mercury products previously registered for use in
miscellaneous interior products such as spackling and joint
compounds, adhesives and acoustical plaster were also cancelled in
1990.
Mercury has been added to paints and coatings to preserve the
paint in the can by controlling microbial growth, principally
bacteria, and to protect the paint film from mildew attack after.it
isr applied to "an "outdoor-surface...
Most pesticidal uses of mercury were cancelled in 1976. The
use of mercury in paint was allowed to continue because it was
determined that effective alternatives were not readily available.
Alternative pesticides to preserve paint and to control mildew-are
available today and are in common use.
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US EPA
Headquarters and Chemical Libraries
EPA West Bldg Room 3340
Maiicode 3404T
1301 Constitution Ave NW
Washington DC 20004
202-566-0556

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