Formaldehyde regulations exposure

Urea—formaldehyde (UF) resias commonly were used ia the past. However, because of the lack of moisture resistance and the potential for the resias to hydroly2e ia the presence of moisture and decompose iato urea and formaldehyde, they are not used as much now. Governmental regulations are under development that eliminate the use of UF resia ia wood products. This would limit the exposure of the pubHc to formaldehyde, a Hsted carciaogen, formed by the decomposition of UF resia. Today most wood products use pheaol—formaldehyde (pheaoHc) resias, but urethane-based resias are becoming more common. 

Formaldehyde is a harmful compound released from walls and furnitures in new houses because adhesives containing HCHO are often used in constmction materials. In addition, H CHO is emitted by tobacco smoke and combustion exhaust gases. Long exposure to HCHO causes serious health problems called sick house diseases. In Japan, the concentration of HCHO in indoor air is regulated [54] to under 0.08 ppm based on the recommendation of the World Health Organization (WHO). 

EPA. 1987d. Assessment of health risks to garment workers and certain home residents from exposure to formaldehyde. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Pesticides and Toxic Substances. EPA. 1988a. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Code of Federal Regulations. 40 CFR 372. 

Despite this fact, some governments are now enforcing regulations that are based on test methods that are not suitable for determining formaldehyde exposure levels and risks. Thus, some countries have regulated the formaldehyde content of particleboard, relying on the perforator method, European Standard Method EN 120) (4) which theoretically measures the total quantity of free formaldehyde in particleboard. The current regulatory situation for some countries is shown in Table II. 

Occupational and Indoor Air Formaldehyde Exposure Regulations and Guidelines... 

Control limits are based on Regulations, Approved Codes of Practice, European Community directives, or Health and Safety Commission instructions, and are limits which should not be exceeded. Failure to comply with a control limit may result in enforcement action by a Health and Safety Executive Inspector. With some controlled substances (i.e. those with no minimum threshold below which adverse effects do not occur, or where short exposure to high concentrations cause injury) exposures may need to be reduced to the lowest levels justifiable on a cost/risk basis. The present strategy behind the application of control limits for exposure to relatively few substances, some of which are not highly toxic, is based on the recognition that these substances are very commonly used at work. Until a few years ago, a great many were used without any real control of exposure (e.g. asbestos, vinyl chloride and lead compounds). Some, such as methylene chloride, formaldehyde and styrene, have been shown more recently to be potentially very harmful, in both the short and the long term, at levels of exposure just above the limits set, and they are included because of their widespread use at work. 

Rest K. M. and N. A. Ashford (1988) Regulation and Technological Change the case of occupational exposure to formaldehyde Harvard Journal of Law and Technology, 1 63-96. 

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