I’m disappointed to report that, despite the overwhelming science linking BPA to health problems, the state’s science advisory board voted this afternoon against adding it on California’s Prop. 65 list of chemicals known to cause cancer or birth defects.
We heard some damning testimony today from scientists, doctors, parents and breast cancer survivors who hoped, as we did, that the California EPA would declare that bisphenol A is too toxic to ignore.
This is a missed opportunity. Had the advisory board voted to add BPA to the Prop. 65 list, manufacturers would have been required to report its use in consumer products. Californians most often associate Prop. 65 with the WARNING signs at gas stations, on lead crystal glasses and next to the canned tuna in supermarket aisles.
But to the national community of health advocates and legislators working to reduce our exposure to this toxic chemical, today’s vote is by no means the end of the conversation. Prop. 65 listing would have meant a boost to legislation and market changes already underway, but those efforts will continue in California, in Congress and in corporate board rooms.
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