Chemical Education Today
Book & Media Reviews Decades of Dioxin. Limelight on a Molecule by Warren B. Crummett Xlibris: Philadelphia, 2002. 345 pp, ISBN 1401069088 (hardbound), $32.99; ISBN 140106907X (paperback), $22.99. reviewed by Robert W. Baughman
This book will be of interest to anyone who is concerned with environmental issues, analytical chemistry, or regulation of the chemical industry, as well as those who would enjoy a forthright autobiography. As its title indicates, the book is about a molecule, but even more it is a book about a man and the individuals and experiences that he encountered during a long and fascinating career in the chemical industry. In the “dioxin” literature, where second-hand opinion vastly outweighs original data, this monograph stands out as a trove of primary information, including many personal anecdotes that add perspective and color. The author traces his own life and career in the chemical industry from his childhood in West Virginia to his retirement from Dow Chemical Co. as a senior manager, and along the way weaves in the details of how he came to be involved in the issues surrounding the chlorinated dibenzop-dioxins. Regrettably, there is no index even though references are included at the end of each chapter, so finding specific topics is not easy. Presented with the view an analytical chemist, the firsthand reports of conditions in the chemical industry from the early 1940s on are compelling. The author explains frankly what he encountered on a day-to-day basis, and what the practices and attitudes were and how they have changed. In some ways this aspect of the book is as interesting as the dioxin story. The evolution of our understanding of what is safe, and ideas about how to monitor the workplace and the environment have advanced steadily in sophistication and accuracy. The author has played an important role in this, which is reflected in the respect that he has achieved both in the chemical industry and the academic community. The subject of the book is “dioxin,” which as the author points out, includes a huge number of compounds, but which really focuses on 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) and a few closely related congeners. TCDD is produced as a by-product in variable amounts up to a few parts per million in 2,4,5-trichorophenol, and it may be carried forward as a contaminant in derivatives such as the herbicide 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T). Normally little attention would be paid to contaminants at this level, and initially this was the case for TCDD. Its presence was indicated by the appearance of “chloracne,” a clinical sign of TCDD exposure, in workers preparing trichlorophenols at Dow Chemical as early as the 1930s, but broad public awareness was achieved only after it was found to account for teratogenesis and other toxicity initially thought to be caused by 2,4,5-T. The book provides references for many 198
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reports in the press describing this, and it provides an insightful, firsthand description of the reactions and responses of many of the key players in this drama. The contrast of denial, hysteria, and thoughtful analysis presented in the book is a fascinating study in human nature. Throughout the author argues for a scientific, quantitative approach, and in the end the scientists in the Dow labs managed by the author developed some of the most elegant and reliable analytical protocols in existence. Arguably they were forced to this level of performance by the pioneering steps of others, but one of the most impressive aspects of the story is the way in which a group of academic, industrial, and government scientists worked together despite very different missions and allegiances. In terms of interpretation, the author leans toward the view that TCDD and other dioxins are naturally occurring toxicants, as put forth in the Trace Chemistries of Fire hypothesis developed by the Dow Labs. The labs demonstrated that combustion of many natural and synthetic materials can lead to low levels of chlorinated dioxins, and they argued that TCDD found in rivers in Michigan could well be associated with such natural sources as opposed to the Dow chlorophenol manufacturing sites such as Midland. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, however, concluded that the most probable source was in Midland. One must say that from a variety of other studies the evidence is strong that TCDD in the environment is most closely associated with human activities involving chlorophenols or their derivatives, although combustion continues to be a source. Whether the levels found in the environment have any biological or clinical significance is another question. The author takes the view that they probably do not. TCDD remains the most toxic man-made molecule that has been identified, but it is clear that there has been no large-scale, readily identifiable, human toxicity associated with it thus far. There is, however, much debate and some evidence that toxicity has occurred in humans with known exposure. The author offers himself and others in the chemical industry as test cases. Clearly whatever exposure he has had has not dulled his sense of humor and optimistic spirit. At times the tone of the writing is strident and repetitive, but the author can readily be forgiven in view of the forthrightness of his comments. He makes clear the quality and thoroughness of the Dow response to the dioxin crisis, but he is unforgiving in his comments about the attitudes and actions of some others in the industry. At times he hints that the Dow management did not always see the light, either. One may wonder if to some degree the competence of the Dow response is a tribute to the author. The book certainly acknowledges all of the key players in this saga. In summary, this is a unique book about a very special molecule and a very special man. Robert W. Baughman is at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, 6001 Executive Blvd., Room 2137, Bethesda MD 20892-9527;
[email protected].
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