Ban on BPA in plastics moves forward in California legislature
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The bottle battle is heating up in California.
The state Senate narrowly approved a proposal today that would ban the use of a substance in baby bottles, toddler sippy cups and food containers.
The chemical called bisphenol A, but more commonly known as BPA, is said by some independent scientists to pose a threat to childhood development.
Times reporter Eric Bailey in Sacramento writes that the bill by state Sen. Fran Pavley (D-Agoura Hills) prohibiting the use of BPA next goes to the Assembly, where it is expected to face fierce resistance from manufacturers of the infant products that contain the controversial chemical.
Industry leaders have targeted California for an orchestrated lobbying and grassroots PR campaign to turn back efforts by health and consumer groups to ban the use of the chemical, a component in the manufacture of plastic containers.
Researchers from the chemical industry say the public health threat has been vastly overblown. But more than 200 independent scientific studies have linked BPA to brain development and behavioral problems in young children, early puberty and the eventual onset of some types of cancer. Scientists say the chemical can leach into a liquid, particularly when a bottle or cup is heated.
Pavley said on the floor that the goal of her legislation is to protect ‘the most vulnerable,’ stressing that affordable alternatives are already available to the chemical industry. ‘For each year we delay, 500,000 babies are born in California’ who could be affected, she said.
The measure squeaked through with a bare majority largely on partisan lines, 21-16, though two Democrats -- Sens. Ron Calderon (D- Montebello) and Gloria Negrete McLeod (D-Chino) -- voted with the Republicans.
Sen. George Runner (R- Lancaster) said the measure is a ‘knee-erk reaction’ that sidesteps efforts the state undertook just last year to more fully study the effects of potential chemical threats before adopting blanket bans.
BPA has been used since the 1950s as an additive to give plastics more strength and is common in hundreds of household products, including plastic bottles and food containers. It is also used in the linings of canned goods such as soup, baby formula and fruits or vegetables.
In March, Connecticut Atty. Gen. Richard Blumenthal said that six companies had stopped manufacturing baby bottles containing BPA in response to a request from his office and attorneys general from Delaware and New Jersey.
The companies are Avent America Inc., Disney First Years, Gerber, Dr. Brown’s, Playtex Products Inc. and Evenflo Co.
-- Nancy Rivera Brooks
