Toxic Chinese Drywall May Contain Radioactive Phosphorus Substance

Some Chinese manufacturing experts say that the use of a radioactive substance may be causing corrosion and other problems with defective drywall that U.S. homeowners have experienced with wallboard imported from China.

Toxic Chinese drywall has caused thousands of homeowners across the United States to experience strong sulfuric smells, corrosion of wiring and appliances, and potential health problems after their homes were built with drywall imported into the country in the mid-2000s during a domestic shortage of the building material.

While U.S. investigators have identified high levels of sulfur compounds used to make the drywall, Chinese drywall builders and manufacturing experts say the problem may be related to the use of phosphogypsum, a radioactive waste by product. The EPA banned the use of phosphogypsum in building materials in the United States twenty years ago, but there are no restrictions in China, and customs officials do not look for the material.

Some estimates suggest that the toxic drywall may have been used to build as many as 300,000 homes throughout the United States. Homes in Florida, Louisiana and other southeastern portions of the country, where there is high humidity, appear to have been the most affected by the drywall problems.

The EPA banned phosphogypsum in 1989 because it contains radium, which is radioactive, and has been linked to higher risk of lung cancer. Additionally, an EPA hazard summary states that “[c]hronic exposure to radium in humans, by inhalation, has resulted in acute leukopenia, while oral exposure has resulted in anemia, necrosis of the jaw, abscess of the brain and terminal bronchopneumonia.” The summary also states that radium is a “potent human carcinogen” known to cause lung, bone, head and nasal passage tumors via oral exposure.

Chinese manufacturing experts say phosphogypsum is used regularly in Chinese drywall, and a Los Angeles Times investigation of custom records found that at least four Chinese companies shipped drywall made with phosphogypsum to the United States in 2006.

Chinese manufacturers have estimated that as many as 80% of drywall makers in China use phosphogypsum because it is cheap and unregulated. They also say that the signs of corrosion experienced by U.S. homeowners are one of the commonly known side-effects of phosphogypsum-laced drywall.

But U.S. investigators are not so sure. Tests in Florida, the state hardest hit by the problems, have turned up no evidence of radioactive Chinese drywall in U.S. homes. Investigators also say that the corrosion and smells associated with defective Chinese drywall is consistent with high amounts of sulfur compounds.

A number of toxic Chinese drywall lawsuits have been filed against U.S. distributors, builders and foreign drywall manufacturers. Last month the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) ordered that all Chinese drywall litigation filed in federal courts throughout the country will be consolidated and centralized in the Eastern District of Louisiana for pretrial proceedings. The cases will be handled in a coordinated manner to avoid duplicative discovery and inconsistent pretrial rulings.

In addition to the lawsuits, lawmakers are investigating a number of means of potential relief for U.S. homeowners dealing with the defective drywall problem. Some House and Senate Democrats are investigating whether property owners will qualify homeowners for special tax deductions for Chinese drywall damage.