NEW YORK, Jan. 13 (UPI) -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency believes exposure to a Teflon-making chemical can be harmful but still isn't sure how it affects health.
In a long-awaited draft on low-level risk assessment of the chemical known as perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, officials say they will need to consult with a science advisory board before issuing a more definitive statement, the Wall Street Journal said Thursday.
The ongoing PFOA controversy has resulted in charges by the EPA that DuPont didn't fulfill its legal obligations to share lab results about potential harm from the chemical. The company maintains that it did fulfill its obligations and that PFOA is harmless.
DuPont nevertheless has agreed to pay as much as $343 million to settle class-action charges it contaminated drinking water with PFOA in West Virginia and Ohio in the past 50 years, with a settlement likely to be completed next month.
