The Safety Of Chlorine-Bleached Paper Products

This article is based on a n extensive report with the same title and available from the Univenity oj Toronto Puljo &Paper Centre. referred to as pulp) used in the manufacture of a variety of paper products. The chemicals assessed in this report include chlorination derivatives of 10 compounds (oleic acid, linoleic acid, stearic acid, beta-sitosterol, stigmasterol, prenols, squalene, phenol, catechol and guaiacol) identified in chlorine-bleached wood pulp or wood pulp degradation products [ 11. These derivatives result from chlorine bleaching of wood pulp and include both chlorinated and nonchlorinated compounds (hence the term chlorination derivatives). Polychlorinated dioxins and furans were not examined in this report, as the potential health risks from dermal exposure to TCDD and its equivalents in paper products have been assessed already and have been determined to be insignificant [Z]. The paper products examined here represent personal-use products including bond paper (a high quality, white paper), disposable diapers, facial tissue, toilet tissue, sanitary pads and paper towels. Consideration of food-contact products (such as food packaging) or of other types of bleached paper was not within the scope of this project. The toxicological assessment of the chlorination derivatives present in pulp used to manufacture a variety of paper products involved three steps: An assessment of the potential toxicological hazards of the derivatives; An assessment of the exposure of consumers of paper products to the derivatives; A comparison of the hazard and exposure assessments to evaluate possible effects on human health due to exposure to chlorination derivatives in the paper products. The methodology followed to conduct the above three steps and the results obtained are discussed in the following sections under the headings of hazard assessment, exposure assessment, and sa€ety assessment, respectively. ~ A Z A R D ASSESSMENT