Arsenic Levels from Cape Cod Testing

The sampling protocol for the wood wipes and the soil test was developed by the University of North Carolina’s Environmental Quality Institute (EQI) which also provided the test kits and analyzed our samples.  EQI is a state-of-the-art government certified laboratory and our results have become part of a national survey on arsenic testing on wood play sets. The graph below reflects the estimated lung and bladder cancer risk plotted against our test data and based on informational materials returned with the test results. There are other health risks associated with arsenic exposure but statistical data is not available on these. The risk estimates presented can be thought of as the number of cancers expected in a group of people. These risks, calculated using standard EPA procedures, correspond to an average child playing only 3 hours per week from age one through age six on or near arsenic treated lumber. Cancer risks may be substantially higher if the child is exposed more often, purposely eats small amounts of soil, mouths the wood, gets splinters from the wood, or eats without washing his or her hands after playing on the wood.