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Concerned crowd rallies to ban BPA in baby products

By Sarah E. Brown

Wednesday, Aug. 26 2009, Sacramento Calif.

Beneath a giant-sized baby bottle, a diverse crowd of concerned citizens, legislators, public interest advocates, physicians, scientists and actress/environmental activist Amy Smart joined together for a rally at the California state Capitol to support SB797, a bill which would protect California's children and infants from Bisphenol A (BPA), a synthetic endocrine disruptor chemical added to many plastics and cans which has been linked to early onset of puberty, autism and breast cancer.

What is a Green Job in the Solar Industry?

With all of the buzz around Green Jobs, one member of CHANGE, the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition (SVTC) decided to create The Green Jobs Platform for Solar. The platform outlines a green job as one that goes beyond the traditional definition of simply being good for the climate, but one that is healthy for the environment broadly as well as the worker’s health and takes into account the entire lifecycle of the job.  

Unfortunately, solar panels are full of toxic materials, and many are produced overseas. If the job is truly green, it has to be that way from start to finish. 

Lead Wheel Weights Ban Passes CA Senate

Today the California Senate voted 21 to 13 to phase out Lead wheel weights in California. SB 757 is co sponsored by CHANGE members Center for Environmental Health (CEH) and Clean Water Action (CWA). This bill bans the use of lead wheel weights in the state of California. Currently lead from wheel weights is the largest new source of lead pollution, putting 500,000 pounds of lead into our state waterways every year.

SB 757 makes lead wheel weights illegal after January 2010, removing this large source of pollution from the environment. Information on how this ban keeps Californians safer can be found on the CEH Website.

California Efforts to Ban Bisphenol A

Last year, CHANGE members, Breast Cancer Fund, Commonweal, and Environmental Working Group sponsored SB 1713, authored by Senator Carole Migden of San Francisco, to ban bisphenol A (BPA) in baby bottles, sippy cups, infant formula cans and baby food jars.

BPA, which is used to harden epoxy resin and polycarbonate plastics, has been recognized as a synthetic estrogen since the 1930s. In laboratory tests, trace BPA exposure been shown to disrupt the endocrine system and trigger a wide variety of disorders, including chromosomal and reproductive system abnormalities, impaired brain and neurological functions, cancer, cardiovascular system damage, adult-onset diabetes, early puberty and obesity.