EPA To Release Assessment On Effects Of Formaldehyde Wednesday

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will release Wednesday a draft assessment of the effect of formaldehyde emissions from pressed-wood products, advancing an ongoing agency review of the chemical.

The draft assessment will be reviewed by a panel at the National Academy of Sciences. The release kicks off a 90-day comment period in which the EPA will accept written comments from the public and the National Academy of Sciences that it will use in making its final determination on the regulations surrounding the use of formaldehyde.

Formaldehyde is commonly used as a preservative and is found in certain pressed-wood products. The chemical is an irritant and has been linked to cancer by the National Cancer Institute.

Brad Thompson, president and chief executive officer of Columbia Forest Products, the country's largest producers of hardwood plywood, called Wednesday a "watershed" moment in the debate over formaldehyde. His company stopped using the chemical in 2005, but he said he supports an industry-wide ban that would force other companies, especially Chinese companies, to stop using formaldehyde in its products.

"We want to be on an even playing field," he said. "Everybody needs to be held against the same standard. If we're going to have imports from Asia, they need to have the same standards we meet," he said.

The EPA's move to investigate formaldehyde comes after private citizens and several environmental organizations submitted a petition to have national regulation on the chemical, similar to regulation enacted in California.

In 2008, the California Air Resources Board finalized a regulation that would reduce formaldehyde emissions from three types of wood products: hardwood plywood, particleboard and medium density fiberboard.

Legislation introduced by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D., Minn.) and Sen. Mike Crapo (R., Idaho) aims to create a new nationwide standard for formaldehyde emissions based on the California legislation.

-By Shayndi Raice, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-9291; shayndi.raice@dowjones.com.

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