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Dozens of CA events this weekend honor Latino Conservation Week; Kamala Harris joins Oprah Winfrey in emotional campaign event; Report finds poor working conditions in Texas clean energy industry; AI puts on a lab coat, heads to technical schools.

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Rising threats of political violence, a Federal Reserve rate cut, crypto industry campaign contributions and reproductive rights are shaping today's political landscape.

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A USDA report shows a widening gap in rural versus urban health, a North Carolina county remains divided over a LGBTQ library display, and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz' policies are spotlighted after his elevation to the Democratic presidential ticket.

MI Database Key to Poison-Free Toys

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Thursday, September 17, 2009   

Ann Arbor, MI - There could be something other than lunch in your kid's lunchbox, and it could be dangerous. But, a new collection of product test results is available to unlock the mystery. The first-of-its-kind - and world's largest - national database being launched in Ann Arbor, offers public insight into thousands of potentially hazardous products that kids play with and everyone uses. The Ann Arbor-based Ecology Center tallied 50,000 test results on toys, cars, lunch boxes, even purses.

The Center's policy director, Mike Schriberg, says the database offers people a way of knowing whether products on the shelf are laden with harmful chemicals.

"Our database is a first-start at actually informing parents and pet owners about toxic chemicals that may be in products. It's a place where people can get access to information that doesn't exist anywhere else."

The antiquated federal law that currently governs product testing needs to be changed, says Schriberg.

"To date, the EPA has required testing on only 200 of the more-than 80,000 chemicals that have been on the market since the law first passed in 1976. We're looking to reform and rewrite this outdated statute."

The government does not have standards for chemicals used in pet products, which often-times live on the floor with kids, he says.

"Pets are really the canary in the coalmine, in terms of chemical exposure. Some of our findings on pet products are the most-surprising of all. We tested over 400 of them, and 45 percent - nearly half - had detectable levels of one or more hazardous chemicals."

Lead, mercury and arsenic are a few common elements found in products made for children and pets, according to product safety advocates. Each is known to cause various developmental or health problems. The Learning Disability Association of Michigan and other organizations are lobbying Congress to revise the toxic substances law. The new public database offers parents and pet owners detailed information about 5,000 products at www.HealthyStuff.org.



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