Toad lickers and treated lumber

By Herbert Guerry President Savannah Wood Preserving Co., Inc. Savannah. Ga.

;'' attention to them. He admitted the bees could be dangerous, but the danger depended upon circumstances. One had to do something foolish to get stung, and even then, death was not certain. The Press could have reported as much, but that wouldn't attract readers, viewers or. what is most important to the media, advertisers.

Over the last year or so, a number of sensationalized and often sloppily researched news stories and editorials questioning the safety of CCA have appeared. They panicked Florida's governor, Jeb Bush, into banning CCA products on that state's PlaY-

Sensational stories have aided a propaganda attack by environmentalists and their lawyers against wood preservatives.

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grounds, and helped the EPA to reach its "voluntary agreement" in February with the CCA chemical manufacturers. The agreement will restrict the use of CCA around residences and playgrounds (perhaps 8O7o of the present CCA market) beginning in 2004, opening the door for use of more expensive "altemative preservatives." These preservatives could cost consumers and builders, in rough, round numbers, an extra half billion dollars per year.

While the press has certainly sensationalized the CCA issue, the question of the safety of wood preserva- tives containing arsenic came originally not from the press, but from environmentalists and health advocates. The reasoning of their argument runs like this: Some quantities of arsenic can be quite dangerous, so any quantity must be dangerous. This is like arguing, if we all jumP on the bridge, it will collapse; so if little Harry jumps on the bridge, it will collapse. Arsenic, of course, under many circumstances is dangerous, as are iodine, gasoline, bleach, lye, electricity, automobiles, prescription drugs, our fellow human beings, and even fluoridated toothpaste, which carries such warnings as, "WARNING: As with all fluoride toothpastes, keep out of the reach of children under 6 years of age. If you accidentally swallow more than used for brushing, seek professional assistance or contact a Poison Control Center immediately." And this is stuff that we Put in our mouth two or three times a daYl

A bottle of iodine is so dangerous that it carries a scull and crossbones on its label even though, in trace amounts. iodine is a necessary nutrient. Most, if not all, PrescriPtion drugs are toxic in quantities greater than their prescribed amounts. Like it or not, dangers surround us. The only reason they don't get the same publicity as CCA is because we're so familiar with them that such scare tactics would be laughed away, while arsenic has an exotic, mysterious connotation, as in Arsenic and Old Lace or a poet's "They put arsenic in his cuP / and shook to see him drink it uP."

What does this have to do with toad licking? During the 1980s, the word somehow got out that one could

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