Austin Dry Cleaner News: Industry Defends PERC
Feb 20th, 2010 by Adam
Recently, representatives of the Drycleaning & Laundry Institute,
MidAtlantic Association of Cleaners and Korean Drycleaners Association
appeared at a hearing of the District of Columbia’s Committee on
Government Operations and the Environment to defend perc
(perchloroethylene) against a proposed ban. Several chemicals were to
be banned in the District of Columbia by the Human & Environmental
Health Protection Amendment Act of 2009, including perc.
Dry Cleaner Opposition
Testifying against the proposed ban, Mary Scalco, Charlie Smith and
Richard Ehrenreich, members of the various Drycleaning Associations,
instead focused on advances in equipment and the resulting reduction
in perc use. Representatives also shared Drycleaning & Laundry
Institute 2007 Solvents White Paper and testified about undue economic
hardship an immediate ban could create for drycleaner owners and
operators.
Committee Argues Against Perc
Representatives from several industry associations appeared separately
at a meeting of Philadelphia Air Management Contol Board Ad Hoc
Committee arguing against a perc use phase-out in co-commercial
facilities in the city, those sharing premises with other businesses.
A representative of the Halogenated Solvents Industry Alliance, Dr.
Paul Dugard, challenged many intrepretations of information regarding
perc and perc exposures.
Drycleaning & Laundry Institute Wants Modification
Drycleaning & Laundry Institute’s Jon Meijer argued for a modified
ordinance allowing drycleaners in Philadelphia’s continued use of perc
in co-commercial facilities if they could lower perc levels to below
40 ppb. The executive director of the National Cleaners Association,
Nora Nealis, stated that New York does not limit perc use in
co-commercial locations and emphasized the effectiveness of technology
available to control emissions.
Philadelphia’s Air Management Control Board will review the
information and may ultimately allow co-commercial locations to
continue to use perc without threat of a phase-out.
