A recent I-Team segment from CBS Boston on PVC pipe missed some important context and background information. We contacted the station to give the information they had missed but, unfortunately, they didn’t respond to our effort to make sure their viewers were fully informed. Here’s what they missed:
Cheryl Fiandaca
Chief Investigative Reporter
WBZ-TV Boston
Dear Ms. Fiandaca
On behalf of the Vinyl Institute, in response to your recent I-Team segment on PVC pipe [“Plumbers say PVC is a Long-term Hazard,” 6/7/21], I write to provide some important background information -- and context -- about piping materials and installation missing from your story.
First, I am compelled to point out the one-sided nature of the story itself. While the segment devotes ample space for critics of PVC pipe to air their complaints, just one line is provided for the Plastic Pipe and Fittings Association to respond.
Second, your I-Team story was not fact based. For instance, the piece attributes a claim to an anti-PVC activist group about the use and disposal of PVC products. Had WBZ-TV contacted the Vinyl Institute, we would have raised the fact that the vast majority of PVC that’s ever been produced is still in use today, and doesn’t require nearly the type of maintenance and repairs as other materials. Additionally, we would have noted that PVC is recyclable, and that according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), just 0.8 percent of all landfilled material is PVC.
Third, other assertions featured in the story were not given proper context. For example, viewers were not informed that PVC resin is inert, and PVC dust produced from cutting PVC pipe is considered a nuisance dust by OSHA, and as such safely falls below OHSA’s permissible exposure limit. On the other hand, cutting, grinding, and sanding iron or copper pipe has many associated dust hazards from inhalation, including metal fume fever, iron oxide-induced benign pneumoconiosis or chronic manganese poisoning. None of these facts were included in your story.
When joining PVC pipe for indoor plumbing, cleaners and solvent cements are typically used. As is the case with many aspects of indoor construction, proper protection is recommended and indoor spaces should always be properly ventilated when work is being performed. Again, this is not specific to PVC pipe; some older iron pipe joints rely on leaded joints while joining copper pipe can expose workers to aluminum oxide, copper fumes and solder flux. Viewers were given the false view that PVC pipe is somehow uniquely flawed in this regard when many materials demand protective measures to ensure the safety of the installer. Regardless of piping material used, installers need to take worker safety precautions seriously, including wearing appropriate gloves, face masks, and eye-/ear-protection when cutting and joining piping systems.
The story also falsely calls into question the safety of PVC with respect to the EPA’s designation of vinyl chloride monomer. PVC’s safety has been evaluated and approved for use by government agencies as well as independent certification and testing bodies for over 60 years, including the EPA, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).
NSF Standard 61 assures the quality and safety of drinking water from PVC pipe and plumbing components. This Standard, first developed by the U.S. EPA in the mid-1980s, has been a requirement for U.S. water systems and codes since 1986. And according to the National Academy of Science report “Management of Legionella in Water Systems (2020), PVC plumbing also offers greater resistance to legionella disease than either copper or iron.
Your audience should have the full picture about the advantages and disadvantages of all materials used in construction applications when your station examines these important issues. Should you revisit PVC in the future, we ask that you give us the opportunity to respond to claims about the material so that we may provide your viewers the balance and context they deserve.