In the complicated home insulation safety issue, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has decided to concentrate its immediate efforts on the possible flammability hazard of cellulose home insulation.
Made from shredded paper, cellulose insulation is inherently flammable and requires the addition of chemicals to achieve flame retardancy.
The Commission instructed its staff to immediately begin drafting a Federal Register notice to announce the need for a mandatory rule for cellulose insulation. CPSC staff was also asked to continue its analysis of the flammability hazard associated with cellulose insulation, as well as study the potential effects of regulation on the demand for home insulation and on its safety, utility, and supply. The draft notice, which will be ready for Commission approval by late January, will also invite interested parties to submit an existing safety standard or offer to develop a new standard for Commission consideration.
Commission action came in response to recently raised concerns about the safety of some cellulose insulation products. The Commission has received a petition from the Metropolitan Denver District Attorney's Consumer Office which alleges a flammability hazard for cellulose, fibrous glass, and plastic/foam resin insulation.
CPSC recognizes that properly manufactured, treated, and installed cellulose insulation can have a high insulating value and meet acceptable flammability levels. However, cellulose insulation manufactured with improper amounts of flame retardants may present a serious flammability hazard. CPSC has also learned of allegations that some cellulose products corrode copper water pipes because of treatment with large quantities of aluminum or ammonium sulfate as flame retardants instead of the relatively scarce boric acid.
CPSC will continue its study of the other alleged hazards linked with home insulation in the Denver petition. These include: risk of cancer from inhaling and ingesting particles from fibrous glass insulation; risks of fire from fibrous glass and plastic foam/resin products; and risks of irritation and poisoning from plastic foam /resin products.
About the U.S. CPSC
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risk of injury associated with the use of thousands of types of consumer products. Deaths, injuries, and property damage from consumer product-related incidents cost the nation more than $1 trillion annually. Since the CPSC was established more than 50 years ago, it has worked to ensure the safety of consumer products, which has contributed to a decline in injuries associated with these products.
Federal law prohibits any person from selling products subject to a Commission ordered recall or a voluntary recall undertaken in consultation with the CPSC.
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