IUPAT PCB Factsheet What are Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs)?

PCBs are man-made, synthetic, organic chemicals with similar structures and properties that were used in many building products from the 1920’s until roughly 1979 when they were banned under the Toxic Substances Control Act. There are 209 different types of PCBs (called congeners) and all PCB’s used in building materials and products are mixtures of these congeners. PCBs have no known taste or smell, and range in consistency from an oil to a waxy solid and are colorless to light yellow in color. They can also form vapors and “off-gas” to the air. The physical and chemical properties of PCBs made them useful in manufacturing and were used in thousands of products, but those same chemical properties also caused them to persist in the environment because they do not easily break down which made them harmful to humans, animals and the environment.

Where can PCBs be found?

PCB s can be found in many building materials that IUPAT members may encounter including: caulking, coatings, window glazing, gaskets, rubber, plastics, adhesives, coatings, inks, sealants, pesticide carrier fluids, and flooring materials. PCB containing products are still releasing PCBs into the environment; when they are identified, they may have to be abated and properly disposed of as PCB waste.

IUPAT members may be exposed to PCBs during their work

If you work in buildings or on structures built between the 1920’s and early 1980s, you may be exposed to PCBs. Jobs such as renovations, demolition, building and superstructure maintenance/repairs, and disaster response and cleanup operations may put you at PCB exposure risk. Additionally, IUPAT members’ jobs may include PCB repair/renovation and abatement operations.

What is the extent of PCB use and contamination?

The EPA estimates that abating PCBs from every contaminated building in the 50 states will cost between $150 and $200 billion. This includes public buildings such as schools, government facilities and utility plants and superstructures such as bridges, tanks and dams.

Over 800,000 government and non-government buildings that comprise 12 billion square feet of interior space are estimated to have been constructed between 1958 and 1971 and could contain PCBs.

Approximately 55,000 U.S schools (46%) built between 1958 and 1971 contain PCBs based on results from a survey of indoor air quality programs in schools.

PCBs can cause short and long-term health effects

If PCB contamination is not identified or controlled, it can pollute the environment through air, soil and water, and can also accumulate in our food at toxic concentrations due to bioaccumulation. Due to their wide range of health effects PCBs are listed in the top 10% of EPA’s most toxic chemicals

The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) each have concluded that PCBs may reasonably be anticipated to be carcinogens.

Longer-term exposure to PCBs may result in other very serious health effects including reproductive damage, respiratory damage, liver and kidney damage, endocrine system effects, learning and developmental disabilities, and depression/aggression promotion. Short-term effects of PCB exposure include skin, eye, and throat irritation, Chloracne, breathing difficulties, nausea/vomiting, abdominal pain and weight loss.

Jobs specifications may require specific PCB Abatement Qualifications

• Massachusetts Wastewater Resources Authority-Chelsea Creek Massachusetts

• St. Lawrence/FDR Power Plant, St. Lawrence New York

• SF Bay Requirements SF Bay Requirements

• Multiple Projects Bidding opportunities including: municipalities (government buildings, schools, libraries, etc.), dams, mills, power plants, nuclear plants, bridges

The IUPAT currently offers two PCB training courses

• 8-Hour PCB Awareness Course

• 32-Hour PCB Worker Abatement Course

For information on IUPAT PCB training or other health and safety courses contact the IUPAT iFTI at 800-276-7289.

For more information on PCBs go to the U.S. EPA Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) web page HERE (https://www.epa.gov/pcbs).

International Finishing Trades Institute

International Union of Painters and Allied Trades

7230 Parkway Drive Hanover, MD 21076

References

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) Toxicological profile for PCBs. EPA PCBs webpage https://www.epa.gov/pcbs.

www.IUPAT.org

www.FinishingFirstLMCI.com

www.iFTI.edu