Manufacturing or processing a chemical used in most modern car tires increases the chances of serious illnesses for workers and fence-line communities breathing the air near or in facilities, according to EPA’s latest draft risk assessment.
The agency determined 1,3-butadiene, a gas derived from petroleum to make rubbers, “presents an unreasonable risk” each way it is processed, but the chemical generally isn’t risky once it’s in the product.
That determination, if finalized under the Toxic Substances Control Act, means EPA must pose restrictions, bans or stronger workplace protections to reduce the unreasonable risks.
When it is manufactured or used to make products, 1,3-butadiene is mainly released into the air from facilities, “with relatively small releases to land or water,” according to the draft risk assessment. Butadiene is “stable in consumer products and not expected to degrade and expose the consumer,” it continues.
