Document pRKXpvvG0ypwp4vkMjg6X67D

todaymV H 'm rMiuOiNxuDMAY1,1 JANUARY 24, 1983 C02627 DIAL STA. 2 0 2 fCT 0" " * * o r d e r . QUESTION: RESPONSE: with the publicity concernING DIOXINS AT TIMES BEACH, DON T YOU THINK THE PEOPLE OUT HERE NEED A LITTLE MORE INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT IS GOING ON AND WHAT THE EFFECTS ARE? YES, WE ARE AWARE OF THE INTEREST IN THE SUBJECT. OF THE WE ARE REPRINTING AN ARTICLE THAT APPEARED IN THE Y, 1983 ISSUE TITLED ITS EFFECTS ON ANIMALS AND PEOPLE . AS A MAJOR U.S. CHEMICAL COMPANY WITH WORLD-CUSS RESEARCH EXPERTISE, MONSANTO IS FREQUENTLY SOUGHT OUT BY GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS, THE NEWS MEDIA, THE GENERAL PUBLIC AND, IN DEED, ITS OWN EMPLOYES FOR OPINIONS AND INFORMATION ON A WIDE RANGE OF CHEMICAL ISSUES, ONE SUCH ISSUE, CURRENTLY THE OBJECT OF CONSIDERABLE PUBLIC CONCERN IN MISSOURI, CENTERS ON THE PRESENCE IN THE ENVIRONMENT OF MINUTE AMOUNTS OF A HIGHLY TOXIC, ALTOGETHER USELESS ,,,CNAHMEEM!IC2AL3 WI7TH8 THE TONGUE-TWISTING TETRACHLORODIBENZO- PARA-DIOXIN, OR TCDD. FREQUENTLY ,, CALLED BY .ITS GENERIC NAME, "DIOXIN, THIS SUBSTANCE BELONGS TO A C U S S OF' CHEMICAL IMPURITIES WHICH CAN BE FORMED UNINTENTIONALLY AS CONTAMI- ... iY*`TS DURING THE MANUFACTURE OF CERTAIN TIC IDES AND INDUSTRIAL CHEMICALS. RESEARCH RESULTS HAVE RECENTLY ES TABLISHED THAT MOST COMBUSTION PRO CESSES LIKE POWER PUNTS, MUNICIPAL TRASH INCINERATORS, AUTOMOBILE EN GINES, AND EVEN WOOD BURNING fireplaces, also produce measurable AMOUNTS OF VARIOUS DIOXINS, INCLUDING TCDD. THE FORMAHON OF 75 DIF<TfeNT DIOXIN COMPOUt^'lS CHEMICALLY POSSIBLE, BUT WE WILL FOCUS HERE ON ONLY ONE, TCDD, WHICH WE WILL REFER TO AS SIMPLY "DIOXIN." IN 1971, WASTE OIL CONTAINING THIS DIOXIN, U T E R TRACED TO A NOW DEFUNCT PHARMACEUTICAL P U N T IN SOUTHWEST MISSOURI, WAS SPRAYED ON THE GROUND TO CONTROL DUST ON MANY DIRT ROADS IN THE COMMUNITY OF TIMES BEACH AND IN SEVERAL HORSE ARENAS AS WELL. IT RECENTLY HAS COME TO LIGHT THAT DIOXIN-CONTAMINATED SOIL FROM THE HORSE ARENAS WAS SUBSEQUENTLY RE- MOVED AND USED AS FILL DIRT AT RE SIDENTIAL SITES, THUS CREATING ADDITIONAL CONTAMINATION AND IN CREASING THE POSSIBILITY OF HUMAN EXPOSURE. Mo n s a n t o 's k n o w l e d g e o f t h e M i s s o u r i DIOXIN SITUATION IS LIMITED TO WHAT HAS BEEN REPORTED IN THE NEWS MEDIA. HOWEVER, A NUMBER OF COMPANY SCIENTISTS ARE KNOWLEDGEABLE IN TH CHEMISTRY AND THE ENVIRONMENTAL, TOXICOLOGICAL AND HUMAN HEALTH EFFECTS OF DIOXIN. WE ARE FURTHER FAMILIAR WITH A SUB STANTIAL AMOUNT OF SCIENTIFIC INFOR MATION THAT HAS BEEN GENERATED AND REPORTED BY INDEPENDENT RESEARCHERS ON THIS SUBJECT. THE FOLLOWING BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE ANIMAL DATA, HUMAN HEALTH INFORMATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THIS SUBSTANCE, AS EXCERPTED FROM THE SCIENTIFIC LITERATURE. THE "ACUTE ANIMAL TOXICITY" OF DIOXIN-- THAT IS THE AMOUNT THAT WILL CAUSE IMMEDIATE POISONING-- DIFFERS CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE c CONSIDERABLY FROM ONE ANIMAL SPECIE PUS POCKETS, LARGE CYSTS AND SCAR'RING TO ANOTHER. IN THE GUINEA PIG, T H & HAVE OCCURRED. IN SOME INDUSTRIAL LABORATORY ANIMAL FOUND TO BE THEt4 ^ WORKERS CHLORACNE HAS PERSISTED FO'R M --- SENSITIVE, A SINGLE ORAL DOSfe^ '' UP TO 30 YEARS, BUT MILD CASES USUAjAY O', N EXTREMELY MINUTE AMOUNT U N " r>- CLEAR UP SHORTLY AFTER EXPOSURE CEA S. TH BILLIONTHS OF AN OUNCE RANGE) T'; MAY PROVE FATAL. HOWEVER, OTHER l:J IN SUMMARY, THE PREPONDERANCE OF TEST ANIMALS, SUCH AS DIBITS, DOG^F p MEDICAL EVIDENCE PUBLISHED IN THE AND HAMSTERS, CAN TOLERATE DOSES i-'t! O SCIENTIFIC LITERATURE INDICATES THAT RANGING FROM 100 TO MORE THAN M M Vii CHLORACNE WILL MANIFEST ITSELF AS THE SEVEN THOUSAND TIMES THAT WHICH Q. FIRST CLINICAL SYMPTOM IN HUMANS EX CAN KILL A GUINEA PIG. M cl POSED TO TOXIC LEVELS OF DIOXIN. IN ;1 O THE ABSENCE OF CHLORACNE, OTHER AD LABORATORY STUDIES ALSO HAVE SHOWN i- VERSE EFFECTS ARE IMPROBABLE. THAT SOME TEST ANIMALS, FED DAILY . v- DOSES- OF DIOXIN IN THEIR DIETS FOR PROLONGED PERIOD OF TIME, HAVE EXPERIENCED OTHER SERIOUS HEALTH PROBLEMS INCLUDING CANCER AND BIRTH DEFECTS. A*> '-of l_>i w h\i3BIIINTNDTAHEFIATIESRNELVLFIYROTINOMMMESONOBTII,LLE DIOXIN TENDS TO PARTICLES MAKING SUBSTANCE. IT IS NOT MOBILE OR SOLUBLE IN WATER EITHER. RATHER, IT SETTLES TO THE FROM THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE, IT'S CLEAR THAT MAN IS MUCH MORE TOLERANT OF DIOXIN THAN MOST ANIMAL SPECIES, SINCE NO HUMAN IS KNOWN TO HAVE DIED FROM DIOXIN POISONING, THE AMOUNT REQUIRED TO KILL A HUMAN IS UNKNOWN. HOWEVER, MUCH IS KNOWN ABOUT OTHER HU"" I HEALTH EFFECTS. BOTTOM OF RIVERS AND STREAMS, BINDING ITSELF TO THE SILT OR SEDIMENT. THIS CHARACTERISTIC PREVENTS IT FROM CON TAMINATING DRINKING WATER SUPPLIES. HOWEVER, FISH THAT FEED ON THE SEDIMENT CAN BECOME CONTAMINATED. IN RECOGNITION OF THIS, THE U.S. FOOD _ DRUG ADMINISTRATION HAS ESTABLISHED 25 PARTS- PER-TRILLI ON AS THE MAXIMU* TO CITE THE MOST RECENT ARTICLE, THE JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN-MEDICAL ASSOCIATION RFPORTFn ON OCT. Tri IMS? THAT THERE IS NO SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE THAT DIOXIN HAS CAUSED CANCER OR BIRTH DEFECTS IN HUMANS. AMOUNT OF DIOXIN PERMITTED IN FISH FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION. U.S. ENVIRON MENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY REGULATIONS CURRENTLY PERMIT THE SALE AND USE OF HERBICIDES CONTAINING UP TO 100 PARTS PER BILLION OF THIS CONTAMINANT. USING UP-TO-THE MINUTE TECHNOLOGY, THIS STATEMENT IS BASED IN PART ON FINDINGS FROM MANY HEALTH STUDIES, SOME DONE RECENTLY, ON SIZEABLE THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRY NOW PRODUCES HERBICIDES TYPICALLY CONTAINING ONLY ONE-TENTH THIS AMOUNT. 3ROUPS OF PEOPLE KNOWN TO HAVE BEEN EXPOSED TO RELATIVELY HIGH LEVELS OF 3IOXIN, GOING AS FAR BACK AS 30 YEARS. THESE STUDIES FOUND NO INCREASED 1ANCER RATES OR OTHER LONG-TERM HEALTH PROBLEMS EXCEPT A PERSISTENT \CNE-LIKE SKIN CONDITION ATTRIBUTED TO EXPOSURE TO DIOXIN. DIOXIN IS A SOLID MATERIAL WITH A HIGH MELTING POINT, (ABOUT 500 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT), THUS IT DOES NOT GENERATE FUMES. THIS MEANS EX POSURE THROUGH INHALING THE SUB STANCE IS NOT A CONCERN. THE MOST LIKELY ROUTE OF HUMAN EXPOSURE IS BY ABSORPTION THROUGH THE SKIN FROM THIS SKIN CONDITION, KNOWN AS CHLOR INE, IS THE HALLMARK (OR VISIBLE INDICATION) OF BOTH ACUTE AND CHRONIC OXIC EXPOSURE TO DIOXIN IN HUMANS. DIRECT SKIN CONTACT WITH CONTAMINATED SOIL. INGESTION IS ALSO POSSIBLE, ESPECIALLY BY CHILDREN WHO TEND TO PUT THEIR FINGERS IN THEIR MOUTHS. M ACNE MANIFESTS ITSELF SHORTLY iF .w EXPOSURE (USUALLY WITHIN TWO 0 THREE MONTHS) AND, IN ITS MILDER ORMS, IS CHARACTERIZED BY. CLUSTERS 'F BLACKHEADS OVER THE CHEEKBONES, .ROUND THE EARLOBES, ON THE FACE, HEST AND BACK. IN SEVERE CASES, SUNLIGHT DESTROYS DIOXIN'S TOXIC PROPERTIES RAPIDLY ON PLANT AND SOIL SURFACES. THE LENGTH OF TIME REQUIRED TO BREAK IT DOWN INTO HARMLESS COMPONENTS BELOW THE . SURFACE RANGES FROM SEVERAL MONTHS TO MANY YEARS, DEPENDING ON A NUMBER