LA Times: chemical-company memos show industry scientists tracked evidence of plastic particles entering the body as early as 1974
The Times quotes the memos themselves, from Firestone, Shell and Union Carbide, and gives the industry's response.
What happened: A Los Angeles Times investigation published Oct. 26 reviewed decades-old chemical industry documents, now public in the UCSF Industry Documents Library and ToxicDocs. They show company scientists discussing a 1974 presentation by Berlin researcher Gerhard Volkheimer, whose experiments showed swallowed particles, including PVC, could pass through the gut into blood and organs. A 1975 Union Carbide letter said the paper had been cited as a "horror story" on ingesting PVC resin and pointed to an older industry-funded study to offset it.
Why it matters: Microplastics are now found in human bodies, and the Times notes their presence has been linked to heart disease, inflammation and cancer. The documents speak to when the industry first had reason to worry.
How much agreement is there? Highly contested. Stanford epidemiologist Tracey Woodruff, who reviewed the documents, compares the industry's silence to tobacco and asbestos. The American Chemistry Council says "scientific debate over what the evidence shows is not silence" and points to research it funds.
Could someone help? Researchers and students can dig into the same public archives the Times used, and readers can follow drinking-water testing rules like the one California passed in 2018.
-
Microplastics
After exploring Chemical companies scientists tracked early microplastics risks, internal memos show - Los Angeles Times, the science of the particles themselves is in Microplastics.
Defines microplastics as solid plastic particles from 1 micrometre to 5 mm and lists where they come from, including clothing, cosmetics and food packaging.
Wikipedia · Swim · 30 min
0