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  2. FEMA Formaldehyde: the good, the bad, the ugly

FEMA Formaldehyde: the good, the bad, the ugly

By angrytoxicologist on July 3, 2008.

The Good

Analysts from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found that the FEMA trailers had too much formaldehyde (well, yeah) but also that it was due to cheap materials, sloppy design, and drumroll please, lax or non-existing government standards. It's rare for a gov't report to directly say the standards need to be tighter.

The Bad

This is a terrible news story. Why? Just last week, the EPA said they wouldn't lower the formaldehyde standard to the CA level, but they did say that they would do some new exposure and risk assessments; a good sign of progress. This fact isn't mentioned at all, but isn't this lack of a good standard exactly the reason why we're in the problem to begin with? Yes, I believe it is.

The Ugly

As before the CDC solves the problem by suggesting that residents "make relocating to permanent housing a priority" and if they can't do that, "open windows to let fresh air in". Thanks FEMA, this is the type of compassion and forward thinking problem solving that we've come to expect from y'all.

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Pretty much the exact same thing has happened in Australia where the Federal government has launched a (somewhat controversial) intervention to tackle social problems in indegenous communities. The converted sea containers imported from China being used to house government employees are positively riddled with not just formaldehyde but a vast array of volatile organics.

Pretty much the exact same thing has happened in Australia where the Federal government has launched a (somewhat controversial) intervention to tackle social problems in indegenous communities. The converted sea containers imported from China being used to house government employees are positively riddled with not just formaldehyde but a vast array of volatile organics.

The converted sea containers imported from China being used to house government employees are positively riddled with not just formaldehyde but a vast array of volatile organics.