New Galifornia Prop. 65 wood warnings for 2O{3

(-\ellnonxln Pnop. 65 consumer \-zwarnings affect anyone doing business in the state, from product labeling to posting warning signage at the point of display or point of sale.

Since 2010, wood product manufacturers, vendors and retailers have been required to warn consumers of the potential health hazard of wood dust. Industry compliance efforts, which have focused on warning signage and education, have proven effective with no wood dust litisation reported.

In September 2012, warning requirements were extended to wood products containing titanium dioxide, which can be associated with dust from wood products and is known to the state of California to cause cancer. New for 2013 is the addition of methanol, which naturally occurs in the biodegradation of wood products. Warning labels and signage must reflect the addition of methanol no later than March 16, when the consumer warning becomes mandatory under California law.

While industry groups are attempting to address wood methanol emissions in engineered wood products, there has not been sufficient information developed to support exclusion of methanol before the required compliance date. Lumber products have not been tested at this writing. The American Wood Council will fund the future testing for lumber products in cooperation with western lumber manufacturers and the Composite Panel Association. Western Wood Products Association is working with the California attorney general's office to revise the 2013 warning language that will address wood methanol.

Methanol was listed as a chemical known to cause reproductive harm under Proposition 65, effective March 16, 2012. Methanol, sometimes called "wood alcohol," occurs naturally at low levels in wood, fruits, vegetables and many common foods. Methanol's main use is in the production of chemicals. The California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment has proposed two "maximum allowable dose levels" that identify levels of exposure to methanol that require warnings and prohibit discharges to sources of drinking water. The proposed levels are 47 ,000 micrograms per day for inhalation and 23,000 micrograms for ingestion of methanol.

In August 2012, WWPA revised the Prop. 65 wood dust hazard warning to include any (future) substance, including titanium dioxide, which is associated with dust from wood products and known to the State of California to cause cancer. Titanium dioxide is a chemical that is used in edge and end sealers in engineered wood and lumber products, wood stencil paints, and inks as a color brightener. Not all ink, paint and sealer formulations used on wood prod- ucts contain TiO2, and the presence of the chemical varies across individual product lines by manufacturers.

A supplemental mailing to all WWPA subscriber customers who had confirmed their requirement to warn downstream customers and all non respondent customers was completed to meet a September 2,2012, deadline for warning consumers.

California Prop. 65, the Safe Drinking Water & Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, requires wood products manufacturers to inform their downstream customers about the potential hazards of wood dust and other listed chemicals associated with wood products. Since affixing labels to wood products presents unique challenges, the majority of manufacturers issue a warning letter and/or signage. It should be noted, Prop. 65 does not require product warning labels. How manufacturers comply with Prop. 65 warning requirements may vary by comPanY.

Regulators advise that warning materials should be sent annually to customers and each customer should acknowledge the warning has been received. Wood dust warning materials must ultimately be posted at any California retail location where a man- ufacturer's product may be sold.

In 2010, WWPA established the industry's largest Prop. 65 customer notification service for any manufacturer or distributor who wanted to take advantage of a consolidated warning to customers. The WWPA service follows the office of the attomey general of California's warning guidelines. The first signage and warning materials were developed, in consultation with the Western Lumber & Building Materials Association, in meetings held with regulatory and enforcement officials. The 2013 wood dust warnings. issued through the service. are parl of the required customer warnings that are sent the first ofeach year.

Prop. 65 is a "right to know" regulation, which applies to the average retail consumer and is separate from occupational setting requirements enforced by OSHA and other government agencies. Each year, wood Product distributors and others that sell to California customers are informed of their duty, under law, to inform their downstream customers about the potential hazards of wood dust. The warning requirement applies to any business employing ten or more employees that manufactures, Pro- duces, sells, distributes, or otherwise transfers a wood product into the stream of commerce in California.

Companies, which are often not aware warning materials are sent annually by manufacturers to customers and recipients, should review the materials to insure their current warning signage is in compliance with the regulations for all listed chemicals.

According to California Health & Safety Code Section 25249.6, no person in the course of doing business shall knowingly and intentionally expose an individual to wood dust or listed chemicals associated with wood products without first providing a clear and reasonable warning. Representatives of the California attorney general's office have indicated that, in their view, annual downstream customer warnings satisfy the continuous warning requirements of the statute, when coupled with appropriate consumer signage at the retail level.

The WWPA customer notification program and corresponding warning requirements continue to develop to accommodate newly listed chemicals associated with wood products and to better serve subscribing manufacturers and their customers.

By Craig Larsen, Softwood Export Council