Tuesday, March 04, 2008
CDC TESTING REPORT NAMES BRAND NAMES
RV Business
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
A report released Monday (March 3) by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provided brand-specific information gleaned from the agency’s recent testing of formaldehyde levels on 519 trailers, park models and manufactured houses used for emergency relief following the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes.
The Associated Press reported that CDC said formaldehyde levels in the trailers provided to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) vary greatly by brand. According to the report, air samples from trailers made by Gulf Stream Coach Inc., Keystone RV Co., Pilgrim International Inc. and Forest River Inc. contained more than four times the formaldehyde levels that are found in newer U.S. homes.
All four manufacturers, which had no comment or were unavailable when contacted by RV Business, are headquartered in Northcentral Indiana. Rep. Mark Souder, who represents the state's third district including a major portion of Elkhart County, recently met with several Indiana manufacturers and is questioning CDC's findings. Souder also sits on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which has been looking into formaldehyde levels and alleged respiratory ailments in trailers for more than a year.
“I have several problems with CDC’s conclusions, particularly that there wasn’t any distinction made between the trailers built specifically for FEMA with different specs and mainstream trailers from dealers,” Souder told RV Business.
In a letter to CDC Director Julie Gerberding, Souder also noted that no set standard was used in the testing and other variables outside of outgassing from trailers could raise fume levels. “It does not appear that in analyzing the ambient level of formaldehyde in mobile homes and travel trailers, all potential sources of that formaldehyde were fully considered,” he wrote. “Formaldehyde is a common chemical used in many household products, and the level of ambient formaldehyde can be elevated by, among many other things, pollution, mold, smoking and cooking.”
The Associated Press reported that air samples from 358 travel trailers, 82 park models and 79 mobile homes were taken from Dec. 21 through Jan. 23, said Mike McGeehin, director of a CDC division that focuses on environmental hazards.
CDC said that the fume levels in the majority of the 519 trailer and mobile homes in Louisiana and Mississippi were higher than what people are exposed to in most modern homes.
The CDC found average levels of 77 parts formaldehyde per billion parts of air, significantly higher than the 10 to 17 parts per billion concentration seen in newer homes. Levels were as high as 590 parts per billion.
In the latest report, the CDC found an average level of 108 parts per billion in Pilgrim-brand travel trailers, 103 in trailers made by Gulf Stream, 102 in those built by Keystone and 85 in those made by Forest River.
Fleetwood trailers had average levels of 39 and 42 parts per billion. All other brands of travel trailers, analyzed collectively by the CDC, averaged 73 parts per billion.
By far the most prevalent brand among FEMA's nearly 47,000 trailers, park models and mobile homes is Gulf Stream, with more than 14,600 trailers. Forest River is the second most common with about 3,200 trailers.
The CDC study found that formaldehyde levels in park models and mobile homes were on average lower than those in travel trailers.
According to the Associated Press, the study did not prove people became sick from the fumes, but merely took a snapshot reading of fume levels. They tested only for formaldehyde, a colorless gas with a pungent smell that can cause respiratory problems and has been classified by scientists as a carcinogen.
It's not clear whether the finding in the Gulf Coast trailers can be applied to travel trailers elsewhere in the country, McGeehin said. Scientists have said that heat and other factors may increase formaldehyde levels.
“We have to limit ourselves to the data in front of us,” he said. “Right now I don't feel any cause for alarm for people who own these units.”
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
A report released Monday (March 3) by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provided brand-specific information gleaned from the agency’s recent testing of formaldehyde levels on 519 trailers, park models and manufactured houses used for emergency relief following the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes.
The Associated Press reported that CDC said formaldehyde levels in the trailers provided to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) vary greatly by brand. According to the report, air samples from trailers made by Gulf Stream Coach Inc., Keystone RV Co., Pilgrim International Inc. and Forest River Inc. contained more than four times the formaldehyde levels that are found in newer U.S. homes.
All four manufacturers, which had no comment or were unavailable when contacted by RV Business, are headquartered in Northcentral Indiana. Rep. Mark Souder, who represents the state's third district including a major portion of Elkhart County, recently met with several Indiana manufacturers and is questioning CDC's findings. Souder also sits on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which has been looking into formaldehyde levels and alleged respiratory ailments in trailers for more than a year.
“I have several problems with CDC’s conclusions, particularly that there wasn’t any distinction made between the trailers built specifically for FEMA with different specs and mainstream trailers from dealers,” Souder told RV Business.
In a letter to CDC Director Julie Gerberding, Souder also noted that no set standard was used in the testing and other variables outside of outgassing from trailers could raise fume levels. “It does not appear that in analyzing the ambient level of formaldehyde in mobile homes and travel trailers, all potential sources of that formaldehyde were fully considered,” he wrote. “Formaldehyde is a common chemical used in many household products, and the level of ambient formaldehyde can be elevated by, among many other things, pollution, mold, smoking and cooking.”
The Associated Press reported that air samples from 358 travel trailers, 82 park models and 79 mobile homes were taken from Dec. 21 through Jan. 23, said Mike McGeehin, director of a CDC division that focuses on environmental hazards.
CDC said that the fume levels in the majority of the 519 trailer and mobile homes in Louisiana and Mississippi were higher than what people are exposed to in most modern homes.
The CDC found average levels of 77 parts formaldehyde per billion parts of air, significantly higher than the 10 to 17 parts per billion concentration seen in newer homes. Levels were as high as 590 parts per billion.
In the latest report, the CDC found an average level of 108 parts per billion in Pilgrim-brand travel trailers, 103 in trailers made by Gulf Stream, 102 in those built by Keystone and 85 in those made by Forest River.
Fleetwood trailers had average levels of 39 and 42 parts per billion. All other brands of travel trailers, analyzed collectively by the CDC, averaged 73 parts per billion.
By far the most prevalent brand among FEMA's nearly 47,000 trailers, park models and mobile homes is Gulf Stream, with more than 14,600 trailers. Forest River is the second most common with about 3,200 trailers.
The CDC study found that formaldehyde levels in park models and mobile homes were on average lower than those in travel trailers.
According to the Associated Press, the study did not prove people became sick from the fumes, but merely took a snapshot reading of fume levels. They tested only for formaldehyde, a colorless gas with a pungent smell that can cause respiratory problems and has been classified by scientists as a carcinogen.
It's not clear whether the finding in the Gulf Coast trailers can be applied to travel trailers elsewhere in the country, McGeehin said. Scientists have said that heat and other factors may increase formaldehyde levels.
“We have to limit ourselves to the data in front of us,” he said. “Right now I don't feel any cause for alarm for people who own these units.”
