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Mattress manufacturers use a variety of alternatives to meet federal, state and
local flammability requirements – thereby improving the safety of their products
and saving hundreds of lives each year. One category of alternatives used in
limited types of mattresses is polybrominated diphenyl ethers, or PBDEs. PBDEs
are also used to make many other products – including electronic equipment, TV
set cabinets and computer monitor cabinets – comply with applicable fire
standards.
The mattress industry is aware of reports citing the presence of certain PBDEs
in the breast milk of nursing mothers. We share consumer concerns about these
chemicals and are committed to providing safe and healthful products.
Two recent developments are important in this regard. First, the use of PBDEs in
mattresses – which is already limited today – will likely be phased out entirely
in the near future. The only U.S. supplier of the PBDE variety used in mattress
foam (commonly known as "penta") has announced that it will stop making that
product at the end of 2004. To replace penta, the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency has recently approved an alternative for use in mattress foam. New foams
using this chemical provide comparable or greater fire safety capabilities and
offer the degree of comfort that consumers expect from their mattresses, without
using PBDEs or harming health or the environment.
Furthermore, the state of California has recently set new mattress flammability
standards that will increase a manufacturer’s options for making its products
safer. The mattress industry is working closely with the U.S. Consumer Product
Safety Commission to establish a national mattress flammability standard that is
based on the same test method and pass/fail criteria developed by California.
While no state or federal flammability standard will make a mattress fireproof,
the mattress industry supports these efforts because they will demonstrably
improve the safety of our products in a manner that the consumer will accept and
is practical.
Second, the EPA has evaluated available scientific information on PBDEs and
issued a statement in November 2003 summarizing its conclusions. EPA stated that
it will continue to assess PBDE research and may take steps to not allow other
uses of certain PBDEs in consumer goods. But EPA recognized that penta and other
PBDEs provide important benefits to consumers in slowing fires, and "therefore
increase available escape time in the event of a fire."
EPA went on to say that it "has not concluded that PBDEs pose an unreasonable
risk to human health or the environment." EPA also announced that it "does not
believe that there is a need to remove or replace products that may contain
these chemicals."
Regarding the new substitute for the penta version of PBDEs, the EPA states that
unlike PBDEs, this new chemical neither accumulates nor is persistent in animal
tissue. The EPA also found that the substitute is not toxic to aquatic
organisms.
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