November 25, 2009
The studies were conducted by an inter-agency task force led by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, and include the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The studies showed:
Elemental and Chemical Testing: Chinese drywall samples showed higher concentrations of elemental sulfur and strontium, than samples of non-Chinese drywall.
Chamber Study: This study, which evaluated gases emitted from drywall in laboratory chambers, indicated higher emissions of total volatile sulfur gases from Chinese drywall, than from non-Chinese drywall.
Indoor Air Studies: A 51-home indoor-air testing study of homes with and without Chinese drywall found that hydrogen sulfide gas causes copper and silver sulfide corrosion found in homes of persons claiming Chinese-drywall damage.
These tests do not establish why hydrogen sulfide gas is present in homes built with Chinese drywall, and do not determine whether Chinese drywall contributes to claimed adverse health effects such as upper airway, skin and eye irritation. Based upon these results, the task force plans to develop a process for screening homes for Chinese drywall, and to identify methods for remediating corrosion associated with that drywall. Separately, the task force is sponsoring ongoing studies by Lawrence Berkeley Laboratories, Sandia National Laboratories ("SNL") and the National Institute of Standards and Technology ("NIST") to identify long-term health and safety effects, if any, associated with the products.
If you would like copies of these studies or have questions regarding these developments, or if you would like to know more about our products and toxic tort defense practice groups, feel free to contact Frederick W. Reif at (212) 634-5042 or by email at freif@brhr.com.
