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Q.
Which Cleaners Are Acceptable Under California's Proposition 65?
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A.
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California has some very tough environmental and safety legislation. Fortunately, Proposition 65 is one regulation that makes sense, is relatively easy to comply with, and actually does something to help promote public safety.
Prop 65 is an effort by the State of California that has been in effect since 1986 to improve the quality of drinking water and reduce uninformed exposure to toxic chemicals. It requires the State to publish a list of chemicals which are (a) known to cause cancer and/or (b) known to harm the human reproductive system (male or female). This list is updated regularly and currently runs 18 closely-spaced type-written pages. On this list you will find everything from alcoholic beverages to gasoline fumes and then to tobacco smoke and finally on to some really nasty chemicals which should be used with the greatest of caution by trained professionals.
Furthermore, Prop 65 also requires businesses to clearly warn people about the danger these chemicals may pose. For example, it was Prop 65 that required gas stations to hang signs with the wording “WARNING: This area contains a chemical known to the State of California to cause cancer.”
The law is quite explicit. These environmental exposure warnings must be provided in a conspicuous manner and under such conditions as to make it likely to be read, seen or heard and understood by an ordinary individual in the course of normal daily activity, and reasonably associated with the location and source of the exposure.
We are proud to announce that none of the Micro Care aerosol, pump spray, fiber optic or wiping products contain any ingredients which are listed on the Prop 65 "hit parade". Engineers and purchasing agents can be comfortable they will have no Prop 65 issues with the items you buy from MicroCare.
At the same time, you should be aware that there are other classifications of "hazardous" that may affect your operations, depending upon the package, the chemical and the mode of transportation, for example. MicroCare offers expert guidance on this matter, as well.
Just for the record, we do have one group of products based on a solvent called "nPB." This is a listed chemical on the Prop 65 list (listed as "1-bromopropane"). We market this cleaner under the Bromothane™ brand name. However, it is a specialty product that is not in the standard MicroCare catalog and are not available through distribution, so most customers don't have to worry about them. For more details, check out the Bromothane™ web site.
As a reminder, local safety regulations vary around the globe. Every engineer should become familiar with the regulations which apply in your locality, and select the best solvent within those constraints.
Updated 8-11-2008
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