California Bill

What: On February 13,2W2, California Strate Senator Gloria Bomero introduce SB 1S3. Hdtlighted provisiono of tho bill are as fdlows:

(a) No person rny nnnuMure, distrihlte, sd or offer lor sale in California wood beated wilh an arsenhal-based wood preservative. Legidation typically takes efteol he litst day of the subseguent year in which the bill was passed. f tne bgislation passed dudng 2002, this would rnean a January'1,2003 effectite d&.

(b) The bill would no longer allow arsenicalwood waste to be exempted lrom hazardous waste disposal requirements. Upon the eflestive date ot the bill, it would be required that CCA and ACZA treated wood waste would have to be dispsed ol in a specilied haz' ar&us wasle disposal facility.

(b) Any person ndto owns wood playgtound or recreational equip' ment that is available tor public use or use by children in a public place must remove and replace these subshnces or seal the wood jrnor to January 1, 2003.

(d) ln some key applirmlions for CCA and ACZA (such as some marine useq), tttere are no generally actepted altematives. These industrial uses would continue under tte EPA agreement, but would be bannd u-n&r the Romero bill.

Significarqe of BilL This billwould sliminato the,manufacture, sale oi di*b'utionlof CCA or ACZA trealed wood completely (as opposed to lhe EPA plan that continues to allow industdal uses), and could make this prohibition elfective as early as January 1, 2003. Addilionally the bill could dlctale that the cCA wmd trealed lhat you rcmove from your rctaini.ng wall in your backyard, for example, would need to go to a hazardous waste facillity as opposod to a lined landfill or some other dioposaloption. Estimated disposal costs are b€tween $33 million and $82 million annually (based on research by WWPI).