Monday, April 20, 2009

Fla. to test air in homes with Chinese drywall

Officials in Florida will soon begin air quality tests in homes to determine whether fumes emitted from Chinese-made drywall can make people sick, the state Health Department said Friday.

Agency spokesman Doc Kokol said the tests, which he hopes will begin in several weeks, are complex and have never been done before.

"This is new science, nobody has tested drywall like this," he said.

An Associated Press review of shipping records found more than 540 million pounds of plasterboard was imported from China between 2004 and 2008 to meet U.S. demand during the national housing boom. Hundreds of people nationwide are now complaining that the material emits fumes that make them sick. They claim it also corrodes copper pipes, blackens jewelry and silverware and ruins air conditioners.

Estimates indicate the drywall may be in more than 100,000 homes, more than 35,000 in Florida alone...

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