Warning Issued on Cancer Risk of Chromium

The state Department of Health Services has issued an extraordinary hazard alert warning workers about unusually high lung cancer risks linked to a form of the metal chromium.

Health department officials estimate that about 20,000 welders and other workers are at risk of contracting various types of lung cancer associated with inhalation and ingestion of hexavalent chromium.

Experts estimate that workers exposed to hexavalent chromium at the current permissible levels over a 40-year career run an eight in 100 risk of getting lung cancer.

“The current permissible exposure limit does not adequately protect against lung cancer,” said the warning, which was issued Thursday.

Hexavalent chromium, the one form of chromium known to cause cancer, is used in welding, electroplating and jewelry making. Because of its anti-corrosive properties, it is used in some wood preservatives, leather tanning agents and pigments in ink and paint. The state did not issue any alert to consumers who use such products containing hexavalent chromium.

The level of risk associated with hexavalent chromium astonished health experts who analyzed it, said Frank Mycroft, chief of the health department’s hazard evaluation section in Berkeley.

“The eight in 100 is a very high risk,” Mycroft said Friday.

Risks associated with the substance have been known for years. As far back as 1975, federal worker safety officials had recommended tougher standards, but they were never implemented, Mycroft said.

“It is astonishing that it hasn’t gotten more attention,” Mycroft said.

The department plans to undertake an extensive mailing to businesses and unions telling them of the hazard. The advisory recommends that companies control workers’ exposure by either eliminating the substance or by providing masks and respirators and better ventilation.