Chemicals in Home a Big Smog Source

Regulators have long known that smog-forming chemicals escape with every squirt of antiperspirant, each bubble of detergent and every spritz of aerosol hair spray. And they have been controlling some products' emissions for years, with mixed success. But new research shows that products common in kitchens, bathrooms and garages contribute more to Southern California's smog problem than previously thought.

"It's the same stuff that comes out of a tailpipe or a smokestack," said Jerry Martin, a spokesman for the California Air Resources Board. "We're talking hundreds of different kinds of products, stuff everyone uses. It's almost one secret area of emissions that you don't hear about and no one talks about."

The offending items include detergents, cleaning compounds, glues, polishes, floor finishes, cosmetics, perfume, antiperspirants, rubbing alcohol, room fresheners, car wax, paint and lawn care products.

On a typical day, about 108 tons of smog-forming fumes are emitted from such products used in houses and small businesses in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. The South Coast Air Quality Management District released those estimates last month as part of a new comprehensive plan to cut smog and haze in the region.

Consumer products send out nearly twice as many hydrocarbons -- a key precursor to ozone -- as all of the SUVs and light trucks operating in California.

Across the L.A. region, household chemicals produce nearly three times more smog-forming compounds than all of the factories in the area and five times more than gasoline stations, according to air-quality officials.

As other polluters make deep cuts in emissions, the proportion of fumes from consumer products is increasing. By 2020, emissions are projected to grow by 15%, overtaking cars and trucks as the region's biggest contributor to smog, the AQMD says.

"The regulations we have in place today are just barely offsetting growth, but not making any net progress," said Elaine Chang, deputy executive officer of the South Coast Air Quality Management District.

"There are just so many people here. Each can or product is very small, but when you look at the numbers of them being sold, collectively it is harmful to the environment."