Arsenic and old wood

The US wood industry has reached an agreement with the EPA to stop using arsenic in pressure treated wood that is used for consumer products.

This transition to new alternative wood preservatives will affect virtually all residential uses of wood treated with chromated copper arsenate, also known as CCA, including wood used in play-structures, decks, picnic tables, landscaping timbers, residential fencing, patios and walkways/boardwalks.

By January 2004, the EPA will not allow CCA products for any of these residential uses.

A transition period will provide consumers with increasingly more non-CCA treated wood alternatives as the industry undergoes conversion and retooling of their industrial equipment and practices, while also allowing adequate time to convert treatment plants with minimal economic disruption.

Over the next 22 months, wood treatment plants in the US will convert to new alternative wood preservatives that do not contain arsenic. In the current year, wood manufacturers expect a decline in production of CCA products for affected residential uses up to 25%, with a corresponding shift to alternatives. During 2003, the companies expect a decline in production of CCA products up to 70%.

The EPA has not concluded that CCA-treated wood poses unreasonable risks to the public for existing CCA-treated wood being used around or near their homes or from wood that remains available in stores. Nor does the EPA believe there is any reason to remove or replace CCA-treated structures, including decks or playground equipment.