Nancy Galland on thu 19 oct 00
I thought I's pass this on - it's a response to ques. I sent to the FDA at
Monona Rossol's suggestion. I have sent a list of questions to the email
addresses given herein, but if any Clayarters have questions, it would be
good to let these folks know that we need some answers.NG
"You have a very good issue that we at FDA and EPA have discussed, but have
been unable to definitively answer.
I think we can say that: 1) Ball clay is mined in specific locations in the
US (mostly Tennessee, Kentucky and Mississippi) and marketed as a specific
product, even though it is geologically a mixture of various clay minerals.
Ball clays from several mines may be mixed to provide desired properties. 2)
Every ball clay that was tested in 1997 contained elevated levels of
dioxins. Clays from mines in all three states were sampled. As a result, no
ball clays are in now use in animal feeds and, as far as I know, no ball
clay has been shown to be free of dioxins. The Ball Clay Association (they
have a web site) can be contacted for additional information. 3) EPA is
considering what this may mean for the ceramics industry. It is unknown
whether dermal or inhalation contact with ball clay is of any toxicological
significance. To my knowledge, it is also not known whether dioxins are
destroyed in situ during the firing of ceramics, whether any remains in the
fired ware or whether any may be lost to the air during firing. Contact Matt
Lorber (Lorber.Matthew@epamail.epa.gov) or Dwain Winters
(Winters.Dwain@epamail.epa.gov) at EPA for more information on this and to
find out whether there are any ongoing studies on this issue.
I hope this provides you with some useful leads.
John Matheson
Office of Surveillance and Compliance
Center for Veterinary Medicine
301-827-6649
e-mail: jmatheso@cvm.fda.gov"
Tommy Humphries on fri 20 oct 00
Is there any real differences between ball clays and other
sedimentary/alluvial materials? If ball clays contain dioxins, why is it
that other materials deposited in like manners do not? Is it that these
other materials have not been tested, or is there a property of ball clay
that attracts dioxins?
What I am saying is that most clay in the US is located near coal. Does the
stoneware and earthenware veins also contain dioxins?
If this follows the same route as other dioxin scares, I reckon that the
largest superfund cleanup in history will ensue...but what will we do with
the contaminated material? Heck, I say that we should volunteer our time
and help them out. We can form the material into various shapes and
encapsulate it in a vitrified ceramic glass, this works for nuke waste...why
not dioxins? :^)
Tommy
----- Original Message -----
From: "Nancy Galland"
To:
Sent: Thursday, October 19, 2000 8:31 PM
Subject: dioxins and ball clay
> I thought I's pass this on - it's a response to ques. I sent to the FDA at
> Monona Rossol's suggestion. I have sent a list of questions to the email
> addresses given herein, but if any Clayarters have questions, it would be
> good to let these folks know that we need some answers.NG
>
> "You have a very good issue that we at FDA and EPA have discussed, but
have
> been unable to definitively answer.
>
> I think we can say that: 1) Ball clay is mined in specific locations in
the
> US (mostly Tennessee, Kentucky and Mississippi) and marketed as a specific
> product, even though it is geologically a mixture of various clay
minerals.
> Ball clays from several mines may be mixed to provide desired properties.
2)
> Every ball clay that was tested in 1997 contained elevated levels of
> dioxins. Clays from mines in all three states were sampled. As a result,
no
> ball clays are in now use in animal feeds and, as far as I know, no ball
> clay has been shown to be free of dioxins. The Ball Clay Association (they
> have a web site) can be contacted for additional information. 3) EPA is
> considering what this may mean for the ceramics industry. It is unknown
> whether dermal or inhalation contact with ball clay is of any
toxicological
> significance. To my knowledge, it is also not known whether dioxins are
> destroyed in situ during the firing of ceramics, whether any remains in
the
> fired ware or whether any may be lost to the air during firing. Contact
Matt
> Lorber (Lorber.Matthew@epamail.epa.gov) or Dwain Winters
> (Winters.Dwain@epamail.epa.gov) at EPA for more information on this and to
> find out whether there are any ongoing studies on this issue.
>
> I hope this provides you with some useful leads.
>
> John Matheson
> Office of Surveillance and Compliance
> Center for Veterinary Medicine
> 301-827-6649
> e-mail: jmatheso@cvm.fda.gov"
>
>
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>
Cindy Strnad on fri 20 oct 00
I have to have one more say about dioxins in ball clay.
We are all of us exposed to many carcinogens every day. Some of these are
more potent than others. Some have yet to be discovered. Some are
unavoidable, some can be avoided. Those we can reasonably avoid, we should.
However, there's no offense like a good defense. If your immune system is in
a mess because you smoke, or drink or eat too much, or eat the wrong things,
you will be susceptible to cancer. Our bodies are able to fight off cancer
cells if our immune systems are strong, and we don't sabotage ourselves.
I don't see how we can reliably escape from dioxins in clay without shunning
pottery all together. If I felt pottery were putting me in mortal danger,
I'd quit and go climb mountains or something. I really would.
Now I'm all for using adequate precautions. I exercise regularly, and I
watch my diet. Sometimes I watch as I eat the wrong things, but generally
I'm a good girl. I don't smoke. I drink (wine only) in moderation. So, for
now, I'm not going to worry about dioxins in clay.
I have a life to live, and I don't mean to live it in fear.
Cindy Strnad
Earthen Vessels Pottery
RR 1, Box 51
Custer, SD 57730
USA
earthenv@gwtc.net
http://www.earthenvesselssd.com
Numo Jaeger & Michael Miller on fri 20 oct 00
>Now I'm all for using adequate precautions... So, for
>now, I'm not going to worry about dioxins in clay.
>I have a life to live, and I don't mean to live it in fear.
Knowing how to work safely, learning how to take percautions when working
with certain materials means a life with less fear. This is coming from a
place of knowledge. It is imperitive to be educated. It is important to
know as much as you can about the materials that you are working with on a
regular basis.
If you supervise other individuals who are working with these materials,
for instance if you are a teacher, it is your responsiblity as an educator
to take the information about dioxins in the clay seriously and share it
with your students.
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