CARB gives GreenEarth partial OK
The California Air Resources Board announced last month that it sees no need to regulate GreenEarth as a
drycleaning solvent, but it stopped short of approving it for a state program
that gives grants to drycleaners switching to a perc alternative.
GreenEarth Cleaning had asked CARB to include its solvent in the grant program, which currently
disburses funds only to cleaners replacing perc equipment with wetcleaning or
liquid carbon dioxide systems. Under the program, cleaners can receive $10,000
to switch from perc to a “non-toxic and non-smog forming” alternative.
A letter from Robert D. Fletcher, chief of CARB’s stationary source division, to CARB executives and pollution control officers,
said that the use of GreenEarth as a drycleaning solvent “will not pose an adverse health risk to the public living near businesses” that are using it and that “at this time CARB sees no need to regulate its use in drycleaning.”
But citing concerns raised by the California Office of Environmental Health
Hazard Assessment (OEHHA), Fletcher said GreenEarth still does not qualify for
grants under the state program.
CARB had asked OEHHA to review toxicity data on GreenEarth in light of a concern
raised by a previous study that showed high exposure to D5, the solvent used in
GreenEarth, caused uterine tumors in rats.
GreenEarth representatives and the Silicones Environmental, Health and Safety
Council (SEHC) argued that the uterine tumors in rates occurred by a mechanism
not applicable to humans. OEHHA said that the proposed mechanism was plausible
but there was insufficient data to determine if the rat data is irrelevant to
human risk.
OEHHA listed other concerns as well, including non-carcinogenic affects on the
liver, fat tissue and immune system and the “significant bioaccumulative potential” of D5.
“D5 persistence in the environment and in animal and human tissues is a concern,” OEHHA said in its report to CARB.
Despite failing to gain approval for the grant program, GreenEarth officials
said they welcomed the CARB announcement.
“There is probably no state in the nation with environmental standards more
rigorous than those adopted in California — and the Air Resources Board is no exception,” said Tim Maxwell, president of GreenEarth.
“We are delighted that this ruling clears the air on the safety of our process
and its suitability as a viable alternative to perc. While we have not yet
achieved eligibility for the state’s grant program, we remain confident we will achieve that status in the future
as even more data becomes available.”
Maxwell said that no perc alternative can be successful unless it proves to be
safe, cleans effectively, and is economically viable.
“We are confident that we offer the best alternative on all three measures,” Maxwell said.
He said that GreenEarth has more than 1,200 licensed machines in operation,
including more than 200 in California.
