Half the Man Your Granddaddy Was

– by Joe Charbonnet

Joe’s dog Jackson doesn’t know that he may be exposed to something scarier than the vacuum cleaner.

Public health officials, scientists, and aspiring parents have watched with alarm as men’s sperm quality has declined 50% over the last 80 years. The fact that a similar decrease has been observed in the sperm of dogs suggests that a common factor may be causing this concerning decrease in fertility. Toxic chemicals are a suspect.

A recent study investigated the impact of two chemicals on the motility and DNA integrity of human and dog sperm. Millions of tons of a phthalate called DEHP are used to strengthen plastics each year, but this compound was found to decrease sperm quality. The same was true of a polychlorinated biphenyl called PCB-153. Though PCBs have been banned for 40 years, their extreme persistence means that we are still exposed.

The results showed that while exposure to either chemical harmed sperm quality via a predictable dose-response relationship, a mixture of the two chemicals produced more complex patterns of damage, suggesting that the interaction of chemicals in a realistic “cocktail” can produce a whole greater than the sum of its parts. Researchers proposed that these results are another way that dogs can be our best friends. Because dog sperm is routinely monitored by breeders and these results imply human and dog reproductive systems have similar sensitivities, our canine companions may serve as a sentinel species for the sinking of our “swimmers.”

	Bob showing how foam is made

I am sad to share the loss of Bob Luedeka of the polyurethane industry, a leader for reduced toxics. Our 13 years of sharing the science and policy of flame retardants began when I met Bob in March 2006 at a green chemistry meeting in Oakland. Bob’s efforts directly contributed to updating the California furniture flammability standard so that flame retardants are no longer needed in our nation’s furniture and children’s products. Changing this standard has made every home in America healthier and it would never have happened without Bob’s passion and hard work. When Bob learned that foam makers would no longer be required to use toxic flame retardants, he cried with happiness that foam industry workers and everyone else would be healthier.

Bob was a man of great passion and accomplishment who led the way towards healthier foam and a healthier world. He is greatly missed.

Beginning of the End for Forever Chemicals?

Attorney Rob Bilott has filed a lawsuit against all the producers of PFAS on behalf of everyone in the U.S. with these chemicals in their bodies – which is pretty much everyone. In his eloquent response to the chemical industry request to dismiss his claim, Rob wrote, “Defendants created chemical compounds that do not exist in nature and exposed the world to them-without warning, without asking permission, without regulation, without concern for the damage they were doing…..Defendants used the bodies of hundreds of millions of Americans as their own toxic waste dumps without their knowledge or permission. The nature and extent of the resulting injury is unprecedented in scope, severity, and sheer brazenness.”

• A directive ordering five manufacturers to provide detailed information about where the chemicals are used, stored, transported, discharged and disposed of, and to pay for clean-up.
• Four lawsuits against three companies for damage to the state’s natural resources.
• The New Jersey DEP proposed adding PFOA and PFOS to the state’s list of hazardous substances.

And here’s some global good news: last month more than 150 countries participating in the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants unanimously approved a global ban on the use of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA).

If you might like to go trekking or traveling in Nepal, I recommend my good friend and guide Chandra Subba and his excellent small local company, Himalayan Icefall Trekking.

I met Chandra in 2000 when my daughter Annalise was attending Lincoln school in Kathmandu and he took her 8th grade class trekking. Since then, I’ve enjoyed a dozen diverse adventures in Nepal under his leadership. Chandra’s company has excellent trips with great food, gear, and guides. He provides personalized itineraries and attention for individual travelers, small and large groups for reasonable prices.