Friday, October 3, 2008

Preschool Health and Safety Spotlighted

as New Jersey Daycare Chemically Contaminated

Daycare and preschool kids are routinely exposed to numerous chemicals, prompting the development of eco-friendly schools in upscale neighborhoods.

But health issues of childcare in a public setting received renewed attention when a Paterson, NJ, preschool was closed by state regulators after air tests repeatedly revealed unsafe elevated levels of the toxic volatile organic chemical (VOC) dichlorobenzene.

Approximately 275 children, ranging from infants to 5-year-olds, were evacuated to another facility.

Michael's Energy Factory (yes, it's the name of the preschool) installed increased ventilation and 11 air purifiers in an attempt to lower airborne concentrations of the chemical dichlorobenzene to levels acceptable to state officials.

The building, long used as an industrial facility, was used to manufacture mothballs forty years ago.

This is a long term continuous source emission, not the type problem that can be easily remedied by installing air purifiers. A building that still outgassses after 40 years should not be housing a daycare facility.

Engineers conducting air tests found high levels of 1,4 dichlorobenzene in the building.

Normal aerosol concentrations of the chemical range from 0.12 micrograms per cubic meter of air to 120 micrograms per cubic meter of air,but the preschool contained levels from 11 micrograms per cubic meter to 475 micrograms per cubic meter

OSHA workplace safety regs call for 75 micrograms/cu meter.

Dichlorobenzene is used in mothballs, toilet deodorizer blocks, insecticides, and air fresheners. Its high volatility means it evaporates easily at room temperatures.

Chlorinated benzenes are chemically stable, persisting and accumulating in fatty tissues.

These chemicals cause cancer in rodents, are a suspected human carcinogen, although direct evidence in humans is lacking.

Even less is known about how children, more vulnerable to chemical exposure, will react to dichlorobenzene exposure.

Breathing this stuff on a daily basis just can’t be healthy for developing kids.

Continued high exposures have produced headaches, dizziness, and liver disorders. Symptoms sometimes appeared only after prolonged exposure to dichlorobenzene.

The Patterson evacuation highlights a nation-wide problem in daycare and preschools, where sanitation needed to restrict the spread of contagious microorganisms is a daily regime.

Toxic chemical cleaning products and pesticides are often deployed.

The new eco-nurserys have demonstrated that keeping the childcare free of toxics is possible, although slightly more labor intensive and therefore more expensive.

At minimum, poisons and pesticides should be applied only after normal school hours.

Parents should be notified prior to the use of chemicals on preschool/daycare premises.

While I recommend air purifiers be installed in every nursery, typical residential air cleaners cannot control chemical emissions from a continuous source, and should not be presumed to provide safety in a health hazard situation like this.

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