Science for Citizens - Flame Retardants: Friend or Foe?

October 22, 2019 7:00pm iCal Google Calendar

This free public seminar will be hosted in CBL's Bernie Fowler Laboratory room 1101. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Title: Flame Retardants:  Friend or Foe?

Speaker: Dr. Heather Stapleton (CBL alumna PhD 2000; Dan and Bunny Gabel Associate Professor of Environmental Ethics and Sustainable Environmental Management, Nicolas School for the Environment, Duke University)

Abstract: To reduce their flammability and the risk of fire-related deaths and injuries, a number of building materials, furniture, and electronics in our homes are now treated with chemical flame retardants.  However, this has led to a significant increase in our exposure to these chemicals, and research suggests that these exposures are associated with neurodevelopment deficits in children, thyroid disorders, and potentially cancer.  Please join UMCES-CBL alumna and Duke University Associate Professor Dr. Heather Stapleton as she discusses the good, the bad and the ugly of flame retardant chemicals in our home.

 This seminar is presented as a part of the Science for Citizens seminar series. For a full list of the public seminars in this series, please visit: https://www.umces.edu/cbl/science-citizens