Lead

October 4, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: Baby Einstein Discover & Play Color Blocks

Units: About 35,000

Distributor: Kids II Inc., of Alpharetta, Ga.

Hazard: Surface paint on the blue block contains excessive levels of lead, violating the federal lead paint standard.

Incidents/Injuries: None reported.    » read more »

October 4, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: “Pirates of the Caribbean” Medallion Squeeze Lights

Units: About 79,000

Importer: Eveready Battery Co., of St. Louis, Mo.

Hazard: Surface paints on the leather strap attached to the medallion squeeze light contain excessive levels of lead, violating the federal lead paint standard.    » read more »

October 4, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: Frankenstein Tumblers

Units: About 63,000

Importer: Dollar General Merchandising Inc., of Goodlettsville, Tenn.

Hazard: Surface paint on the center of the eyes of some of the cups can contain high levels of lead, violating the federal lead paint standard.    » read more »

Sold Exclusively at Toys “R” Us

October 4, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: Children’s Toy Decorating Sets

Units: About 15,000

Importer: Toys “R” Us Inc., of Wayne, N.J.

Manufacturer: CKI Toys, of Hong Kong    » read more »

October 4, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: Key Chains

Units: About 192,000

Importer: Dollar General Merchandising Inc., of Goodlettsville, Tenn.

Hazard: The key chains contain high levels of lead. Lead is toxic if ingested by young children and can cause adverse health effects.

Incidents/Injuries: None reported.    » read more »

October 4, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: Bookmarks and Journals

Units: About 150,000

Importer: Antioch Publishing, of Yellow Springs, Ohio    » read more »

October 4, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: Alpine Design Aluminum Water Bottles

Units: About 11,200

Importer: Sports Authority, of Englewood, Colo.

Hazard: The surface paint on the water bottle contains excessive levels of lead, violating the federal lead paint standard.

Incidents/Injuries: None reported.    » read more »

October 3, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. — Citing recent recalls and the longtime failure of the Consumer Product Safety Commission to protect children from hazardous levels of lead in consumer products, Rep. Henry A. Waxman, together with Reps. Bobby L. Rush, Christopher P. Carney, and Keith Ellison, today introduced the Lead Free Toys Act to ban lead from toys, toy jewelry, and other products used by children under age six. Sen. Barack Obama introduced the companion bill in the Senate today.    » read more »

September 26, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: TOBY & ME Jewelry Sets

Units: About 23,500 (about 14,000 jewelry sets were recalled on August 22, 2007)

Importer: TOBY N.Y.C., of New York, N.Y.    » read more »

Departments of Health and Employment and Economic Development to implement latest HUD grant

September 28, 2007 -- A $1.4 million federal grant will allow the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), together with the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) and other partners, to speed up the removal of lead paint hazards from Minnesota homes and reduce the number of children endangered by lead paint.

Lead is a known toxin that can impair children’s development and may even cause death at high levels.    » read more »

Consumers May Return Lunch Bags for Refunds

September 27, 2007 -- Chicago – Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan today announced an agreement with an Illinois-based lunch bag distributor, in which the company will cease the sale and distribution of lunch bags containing amounts of lead in excess of the limits in Illinois law .    » read more »

Washington, D.C. - Sept. 26, 2007 -- EPA is helping to reduce lead in drinking water by issuing a final rule that will improve requirements in the areas of monitoring, customer awareness and lead service line replacement. Specifically, the agency will require water suppliers to provide consumers with information to help them make decisions about how to limit their exposure to lead in drinking water.    » read more »

Compliance with the law sought by agency in Colorado, Utah

Denver, Colo., Sept. 26, 2007 -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is proposing to assess civil penalties against five landlords in Colorado and one in Utah for violations of the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act and the Toxic Substances Control Act.    » read more »

September 19, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) today released the following statement on today’s hearing on lead-contaminated toys at the House Subcommittee on Commerce Trade, and Consumer Protection. Earlier today, Consumer Product Safety Commissioners Nancy Nord and Thomas Moore, and Mattel, Inc. CEO Robert Eckert testified on the recent recalls of millions of lead-contaminated toys. In April, Obama reintroduced the Lead Free Toys Act of 2007 (S.1306), which he originally introduced in December 2005.    » read more »

9/5/2007 -- "It is simply unacceptable that in America in 2007, parents should have to fear for their child's safety every time they buy a toy.

We have just learned of yet another recall of popular toys imported from China because they contain dangerous lead paint. And it is equally unacceptable that our government hasn't seriously addressed the growing -- and now well-known -- risk of lead-laced Chinese toys.

The steps we need to take are simple, and they are long overdue.    » read more »