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California Department of Toxic Substances Control Biomonitoring Symposium Presents New Trends Measuring Toxic Chemicals in People and Wildlife

Posted on: Tuesday, 15 May 2007, 18:00 CDT

The California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) today announced details for an upcoming symposium that will explore innovative scientific trends in California related to biomonitoring, the measurement of chemicals in humans or wildlife.

DTSC scientists based in Berkeley have been conducting pioneering biomonitoring studies for more than twenty years to determine the levels of several toxic chemicals in the blood, breast milk, and fat tissues of humans, as well as the levels of these chemicals in wildlife.

"Biomonitoring is an important tool to help California businesses develop cleaner technologies, keeping our state in the forefront of innovation," said DTSC Director Maureen Gorsen. "It will also help both state and local governments to protect human health and the environment by reducing exposure of people and wildlife to toxic chemicals."

The Biomonitoring Symposium, to be held on May 17 at the California Environmental Protection Agency headquarters in Sacramento, is the third in a series of informational symposia sponsored by DTSC to educate businesses, government, community representatives, and other stakeholders on emerging chemical issues in the state.

In September 2006 Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Senate Bill 1379, establishing the first state biomonitoring program in the nation. The Governor has created a cross-agency, multi-interdisciplinary team to develop a statewide biomonitoring program. DTSC, together with the California Department of Health Services and the state Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, will have joint authority on SB 1379 as the departments work together to detect and measure toxic chemicals accumulating in the bodies of Californians. The new biomonitoring program will help establish trends in chemical exposures and identify communities that have been highly exposed to certain chemicals. It will also address data gaps between chemical exposures and specific health outcomes, assess the effectiveness of current regulations governing chemical use, and help to set priorities for reform.

Featured speakers at the Biomonitoring Symposium represent corporations and government agencies that are successfully removing or reducing toxic chemicals from their products and services. Speakers at the symposium include Dr. Pete Myers who penned "Our Stolen Future," a book that gives a scientific basis for biomonitoring, representatives from Panasonic, a major corporation that has removed lead and other chemicals from the company's wide array of electronics, a small company that manufactures "green" industrial cleaning products that uses no toxic chemicals, and representatives from Catholic Health Care, a San Francisco-based health organization that uses no toxic chemicals in patients' I.V. bags, and other hospital supplies. Also included among the speakers is a representative from The Breast Cancer Fund to discuss the state's new biomonitoring program and SF 1379, along with the San Francisco Department of the Environment, considered by many as a national leader in pollution prevention. In addition, views on biomonitoring will also be presented by representatives from the chemical industry and from non-profit and non-government organizations. The symposium will include a panel discussion, led by DTSC Director Gorsen, in which all presenters will be available to respond to questions from the audience.

To register for the Biomonitoring Symposium or for more information call DTSC at 510-540-3003 or register online at http://www.dtsc.ca.gov/AssessingRisk/EmergingContaminants.cfm . A live Web cast can be accessed at http://www.calepa.ca.gov/broadcast/ .

Previous DTSC symposia covered Green Chemistry and Nanotechnology. Among the future symposia are Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products in the Environment on May 22 and Green Chemistry II on June 19, both to be held in Sacramento.

FOR GENERAL INQUIRIES: Contact the Department of Toxic Substances Control phone: (800) 728-6942 or visit www.dtsc.ca.gov. To report illegal handling, discharge, or disposal of hazardous waste, call the Waste Alert Hotline at (800) 698-6942.

Source: Business Wire

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