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January 10, 2008
Science wins one, for a change
It is gratifying to report that the politics of fear that infected California on the subject of phthalates in toys hasn’t gotten to federal regulators. In response to a media query, a Consumer Product Safety Commission spokesperson said the agency had no plans to honor the request from California that phthalates in toys be banned nationwide.
Noting that the agency had done extensive research on the subject, the agency spokesperson said “it was determined through our staff research that there is not a great risk to safety and health because of phthalates." (Scientists and regulators will never say that anything is “no risk.”) The spokesperson added that the agency would continue to watch the science in case anything came along to change its mind. We heartily agree with that stance. Regulatory decisions on products should be based on risk, not rhetoric.
Posted by Marian at January 10, 2008 6:36 PM