The Hazards of Dry Cleaning

This week a reader in New York City writes:

OK so we just moved into this apartment and there is a dry cleaner on the ground floor. The vents for the dry cleaners are right on the part of the sidewalk that we have to walk past to get to our entrance. So it's like being showered in dry cleaning chemical nastiness every time we walk by. The vents are about 6 feet off the ground so it's high for a stroller, but pregnant moms will have to soak it right in. My questions are: is this legal? (I called 311 and they are sending someone out to inspect it) and the other question is: how toxic is this to walk past at least twice a day? It can't be good.

I know how hard it is to find an apartment in New York City, but this doesn't sound like a great situation. The “chemical nastiness” you're inhaling is Tetrachloroethene (it also goes by tetrachloroethylene, perchloroethylene, PCE or, most commonly, PERC), and it's used to dry-clean clothes (as well as degrease metal parts). It's considered a probable carcinogen by the World Health Organization and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and, according to Healthy Child Healthy World is a neurotoxin and likely to cause cancer. You've already done the right thing calling 311, now it's a matter of figuring out how much PERC you're being exposed to.

Dry cleaners are everywhere and we put clothes that have soaked in PERC directly onto our bodies, but the PERC fact sheet from the New York State Department of Environmental Health may make you rethink the whole nasty business. (Check out this story about dry cleaning alternatives from The Green Guide). You can be exposed to PERC through air, water, skin or food, and inhalation can damage the central nervous system, kidney, liver and possibly the reproductive system.

Here are some of the reports on studies from the fact sheet:

Short-Term Exposure - Studies with volunteers show that exposures of 8-hours or less to 700,000 micrograms per cubic meter of air (mcg/m3) cause central nervous system symptoms such as dizziness, headache, sleepiness, lightheadedness, and poor balance). Exposures to 350,000 mcg/m3 for 4 hours affected the nerves of the visual system and reduced scores on certain behavioral tests (which, for example, measure the speed and accuracy of a person's response to something they see on a computer screen). These effects were mild and disappeared soon after exposure ended.

Long-Term Exposure - Numerous studies of dry-cleaning workers indicate that long-term exposure (9 to 20 years, for example) to workplace air levels averaging about 50,000 mcg/m3 to 80,000 mcg/m3 reduces scores on behavioral tests and causes biochemical changes in blood and urine. The effects were mild and hard to detect. How long these effects would last if exposure ended is not known.

One study reported reduced scores on behavioral tests in 14 healthy adults living (for 10.6 years, on average) in apartments near dry-cleaning shops. The effects were small; the average test scores of the residents were slightly lower than the average score of unexposed people. The range of measured air levels in 13 apartments was 7.6 mcg/m3 to 23,000 mcg/m3; one air level was below 100 mcg/m3, five values were between 100 and 1,000 mcg/m3, and seven values were above 1,000 mcg/m3. The average air level in all apartments was 5,000 mcg/m3 and the median value was about 1,400 mcg/m3 (that is, half the measured air levels were above 1,400 mcg/m3 and half were below it). As with the long-term occupational studies, how long these effects would last if exposure ended is not known. Confidence in the understanding of exposure in this study is less than that in the occupational studies.

Some studies show a slightly increased risk of some types of cancer and reproductive effects among workers, including dry-cleaning workers, exposed to PERC and other chemicals. Cancers associated with exposures include cancers of the esophagus, bladder, and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Cancers less clearly associated with exposures include cancers of the cervix, tongue, and lung. The reproductive effects associated with exposure included increased risks of spontaneous abortion, menstrual and sperm disorders, and reduced fertility. The data suggest, but do not prove, that the effects were caused by PERC and not by some other factor or factors.

While you wait to hear the results of the investigation (I was told it could take up to 21 days), I'd contact the Department of Environmental Protection http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/html/home/home.shtml and The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/home/home.shtml to test the air and water in your own apartment as well. In the meantime I'd amp up the ventilation with fans that blow air out of the apartment, and make you're drinking filtered water. If the dry cleaner fails the inspection they will be given a warning and eventually fined until they close or change their practices.