Flame Retardants in Your Sofa: Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time

The average-sized couch contains up to two pounds of flame retardant chemicals. (Frank Jania: Flickr)

Back in 1975, a pioneering law was passed to help prevent upholstered furniture from burning, as KQED’s Amy Standen reports. Technical Bulletin 117– or TB 117 as it’s known — is now the regret of many scientists. Call it the law of unintended consequences. From Standen’s post:

Manufacturers meet this law by treating the foam with several different kinds of chemicals, up to two pounds of flame retardant chemicals in an average-size sofa, according to Don Lucas, a flammability expert at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Even though the law is specific to California, it affects furniture sold across the country. Major furniture dealers sell California-compliant products in all 50 states, and Canada.

The problem … is that the chemicals don’t just stay inside the sofas. They turn up in