EPA tells schools to test aging caulk for PCBs

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hundreds of school buildings across the United States have caulk around windows and doors containing potentially cancer-causing PCBs, the Environmental Protection Agency says.

The danger to students is uncertain, and the EPA does not know for sure how many schools could be affected. But the agency is telling schools that they should test old caulk and remove it if PCBs turn up in significant amounts.

EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson said PCBs remain in schools and many other buildings built before the chemicals were banned in the late 1970s.

The agency said it would conduct new research into the link between PCBs in caulk and in the air, which it said is not well understood. Studies in European countries have shown that PCBs in caulk contribute to dust and air inside schools and other buildings.

The EPA now recommends testing for PCBs in peeling, brittle, cracking or deteriorating caulk in schools and other buildings that were built or renovated between 1950 and 1978.