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WASHINGTON: US authorities expanded a probe on Monday into drywall imported from China after an initial study found a "strong association" with toxins linked to health and safety problems in homes using the product.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission said it would be leading an investigation into the relationship between the drywall and the reported health symptoms, as well as electrical and safety issues reported by some homeowners.
The agency said it would also examine the origin and distribution of the drywall.
Some of the drywall – prefabricated sheets of plaster used in building interiors – was utilised in rebuilding in southern states after damage from hurricanes.
Several agencies have been investigating complaints that copper tubing in their air conditioning units and electrical wiring have corroded. Some homeowners said their homes smelled like sulphur or rotten eggs and they had trouble breathing.
Until now, the government had made no direct link between the complaints and the imports.
The announcement came after months of complaints from consumers and local officials that defective drywall from China was leaking chemicals that caused illness and safety problems.
The CPSC said in a statement: "We now can show a strong association between homes with the problem drywall and the levels of hydrogen sulphide in those homes and corrosion of metals in those homes."
The agency contracted with a private health and engineering firm for the initial study of 35 homes using Chinese drywall and additional "control" homes.
CPSC said it is "leading the federal investigation and is working with other federal and state agencies to determine exactly what substances are in the drywall, what substances are emitting odours into the air and whether identified substances found in the air pose a safety or health hazard to families".
"This is a complicated investigation and the data must be evaluated before conclusions are made; nonetheless, the agencies and states involved share a sense of urgency in informing the public of their findings and developing safe and effective solutions," the statement said.
Federal and state officials had received some 2,000 complaints about the drywall for health impacts as well as corrosion of electrical components.
"We now have the science that enables the Task Force to move ahead to the next phase -- to develop both a screening process and effective remediation methods," said Consumer Product Safety Commission chairman Inez Tenenbaum.
The study concluded that hydrogen sulphide gas "is being created in homes built with Chinese drywall," although the exact methods were unclear.
An estimated 550 million pounds of drywall was imported to the United States from China between 2006 and 2009. Some consumers believe the health impacts of the drywall components may include bloody noses, headaches, insomnia, and skin irritation.
"We are aggressively investigating if scientific evidence exists linking chemical emissions from the drywall to the reported health complaints," the CPSC statement said.
"At this time, however, any such relationship or long-term health effects are unknown."
Agencies working on the probe include the Environmental Protection Agency and Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
- AFP/so
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