EPA wants toxic fluorescent light ballasts removed from every school built before 1979

[The Straight Story]

Public Schools Call Pharmacia 'Wanton'


BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (CN) - The U.S. EPA wants toxic fluorescent light ballasts removed "from every fluorescent light fixture in every school built before 1979," and a city school system says that Pharmacia Corp. should have to pay for all of it.

Tuscumbia City School System sued Pharmacia in a federal class action.

"On December 29, 2010, the Environmental Protection Agency recommended that every school system in the United States remove the ballasts from every fluorescent light fixture in every school built before 1979 because of the presence of the toxic chemical Polychlorinated Biphenyls ('PCBs')," the complaint states. "Monsanto, now known as Pharmacia, manufactured the PCBs in all those ballasts. Monsanto intentionally marketed PCBs for use in fluorescent light fixtures while knowing that PCBs were toxic, that failing ballasts would release PCBs into classrooms, and that PCBs could cause systemic toxic injuries. Because Monsanto was negligent, reckless and wanton, it should bear the burden of replacing the ballasts."

Monsanto merged with Pharmacia in 2000. Pharmacia is a wholly owned subsidiary of Pfizer. "Accordingly, Pharmacia is the former Monsanto Company. As used herein, Pharmacia is referred to as 'Monsanto,'" the complaint states.

http://www.courthousenews.com/2012/02/03/43610.htm

[think]

1. Great read. Monsanto seems to be at the heart of all things evil /nt

[LiberalEsto]

2. So now we should call Monsatan

Farm-o-CIA?

[RC]

3. As long as the manufacture and not the schools or the tax payers have to pay for this.

[HopeHoops]

4. But why? How many people eat a ballast? They're just fine if you leave them alone.

[NNN0LHI]

6. From the cited article

"Essentially all ballasts manufactured for fluorescent light fixtures before 1979 contain liquid PCBs," according to the complaint. "It has been at all relevant times generally known that ballasts leak and fail, that in normal operations ballasts get hot, and that often they overheat when they fail. At all relevant times, Monsanto knew that ballasts manufactured before 1979 contained liquid PCBs and knew that ballasts leak and fail. Monsanto also knew ballasts often overheat when they fail. Monsanto knew that failing ballasts would release PCBs into classrooms.

"PCBs can enter the body in numerous ways. One way that PCBs enter the body is through skin contact, which is hazardous. PCBs also can vaporize, particularly when heated, permitting them to be breathed. Breathing PCBs is hazardous. PCBs that get on children's hands are likely to be transferred from their hands to their mouths, and ingestion of PCBs is hazardous.

"PCBs are a man-made organic chemical. They do not exist in nature. The PCB problem is caused purely by man, and in this country purely by Monsanto.

"Monsanto was the sole U.S. manufacturer of PCBs. There were essentially no imported PCBs. Monsanto was therefore the sole manufacturer of the PCBs contained in the fluorescent light fixtures at issue in this case.

[HopeHoops]

7. Yeah, but Monsanto creates far more toxic compounds for farming use.

Sometimes they do leak. I seriously doubt it is very often. The shit inside a fluorescent bulb isn't a picnic either. Treat it as toxic waste. In ninth grade, somebody messing around with a steel ball (instead of doing the experiment we were SUPPOSED to be working on) managed to shatter the cover and both bulbs above his lab table. The teacher ordered us all out into the hallway. My thought was, "Shit, it's just a light bulb!" I know better now.

Oh, and just for the record, Monsanto is pure evil.

[hobbit709]

5. I wonder how many 30+ year old ballasts are still there?

[HopeHoops]

9. A shitload.

[hunter]

8. We're getting close to where we can get rid of fluorescent lights entirely...

It'd be a shame to replace a very obsolete technology (old style fluorescents and pcb filled magnetic ballasts) with a near-obsolete technology (low mercury thin-tube fluorescents with solid state ballasts.)

I'm gradually replacing my own lighting with LED fixtures as the compact fluorescents fail.

For example (and not meant to be a commercial...) the Cree CR6 can light replacements slowly infiltrating my kitchen are better than anything I've used before, and much, much better than the magnetically ballasted, hideous flickering, compact fluorescents the kitchen had when we bought our house.

http://www.creeledlighting.com/Products/Downlights/6inchdownlights/CR6.aspx