The editorial on the toxic fire retardant Deca, “Flaming Uncertainty” (BDN, April 21-22), asks the right questions but gets wrong or ignores key facts.

Maine has proposed to ban the use of Deca in televisions, home furniture and mattresses. That makes sense because most Deca use and exposure takes place in the home. Eighty-two percent of Deca exposure comes from household dust, according to the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology.

Toddlers have the highest levels of Deca due to mouthing and breathing contaminated household dust. Lab research shows that Deca damages the developing brain, causing learning disabilities and behavior problems. Scientific studies show that Deca breaks down in the environment into the more toxic PBDEs, which have been banned.

Washington state recently passed a law to replace Deca in the home with safer alternatives. The European Union prohibits use of the commercial Deca product in TVs. Sweden banned Deca use in mattresses and furniture. Legislation to phase out Deca is pending in Maine, California, Illinois, Michigan, Montana and Massachusetts.

Fortunately, safer alternatives to Deca are widely available, effective and affordable. Furniture makers IKEA and Herman Miller, and all the mattress makers, sell Deca-free products. About 50 percent of TVs sold in the United States are Deca-free, including from Sony, Phillips, Samsung and Panasonic.

A safer alternative to Deca for TVs has been identified by Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Danish Environmental Protection Agency, German Environmental Agency and others.

The only uncertainty about Deca is how long it’ll take us to remove this unnecessary toxic chemical from our homes.

Michael Belliveau, executive director,

Environmental Health Strategy Center

Bangor