From: Newmail Article Directory

When you drive home after picking up your clothes from the dry cleaners do you sometimes notice a faint chemical smell on the clothes? More than likely your garments were cleaned with dangerous chemicals that could harm the workers, the environment and the air in your home.

Cleaning fluids were mostly petroleum-based up until World War II but they would sometimes explode if they got too hot, and could cause dizziness or neurological problems. PERC, perchloroethylene, arrived on the scene and was thought to save the day. You couldn’t smell it, it was nonflammable, and was the most reliable solvent for removing dirt. However, PERC, a synthetic, volatile organic compound, happens to pose a health risk to humans as well and is a threat to the environment. According to Greenpeace, 70% of PERC winds up in the air or in ground water. The EPA says that it is during the cleaning, purification, and waste disposal phases of dry cleaning that these hazardous toxins can get into our air, water, and soil.

PERC is used by 3 out of 4 dry cleaners nationwide. California has banned the entire state from its use. Massachusetts, New York and Texas are also considering a ban.

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From the Reno Gazette-Journal:

A toxic solvent still widely used by dry cleaners across Washoe County could be banned within 14 years under plans proposed by health officials. On Thursday, the county’s Board of Health will consider rules that would prohibit use of perchloroethylene, also known as PCE or PERC, by area cleaners by 2023. Any new cleaning equipment purchased before then and after the rule’s potential adoption Thursday would have to use alternative technology.

“The time has come,” said Andy Goodrich, director of the health district’s Air Quality Management Division. For years, officials have grappled with problems posed by PCE contamination of ground water in the Truckee Meadows but the proposed regulation focuses solely on the chemical’s impact on air quality, Goodrich said. The ban, based on similar regulations already enacted in California, is needed to protect the public from a hazardous pollutant, Goodrich said.

PCE, once widely used by auto and machine shops, printers and other businesses, is now most widely used as a de-greasing agent by dry cleaners. The solvent has been linked to cancer and other human health conditions after long-term exposure.

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Relevant Nexreg Compliance Links: CPSC compliance, OSHA MSDS authoring, MSDS authoring