Government takes steps to protect consumers from poisonous substances in homes.
On April 2, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced further staff investigation and an interim guidance with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) on reactive, sulfur-releasing drywall used in homes across America. The sulfur released by this drywall has been associated with extensive corrosion to electrical wiring and metal pipes. The CPSC’s preliminary analysis shows that “certain Chinese drywall emits reactive hydrogen sulfide at rates much higher than other, non-Chinese drywall, and that hydrogen sulfide has a strong association to corrosion.” Although CPSC is still undertaking further investigation of this import safety problem, the agency issued an interim guidance with HUD calling for the replacement of all potentially problematic drywall, as well as electrical wiring and certain piping.
