Home improvement retailer chain Home Depot leads the pack in eliminating a toxic substance in vinyl flooring materials it sells in its outlets in the United States.
New York Times reported that Home Depot had committed to ban the chemical phthalates in the vinyl flooring materials it sells in all its stores, requiring suppliers strict compliance until end of 2015.
Home Depot spokesperson Stephen Holmes said in an email with the publication that about 15 percent of the vinyl products they sell are found to be high with phthalates.
Consumer welfare organizations are concerned of the long-term effects linking the phthalates to the physical and reproductive problems on male babies if exposed often to the chemical on vinyl flooring.
Holmes said in a related CNN report that the change is part of the company's efforts to challenge suppliers to come up with new, innovative options for their products and at the same time are quite beneficial to consumers.
As one of the biggest home improvement retailers in the continental U.S. and chain stores globally, this is a big step for the company for consumer welfare, said Andy Igrejas, director of Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families, a nongovernment organization.
Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families works together with Ecology Center in this initiative controlling
"We call on Lowe's and other major home improvement retailers to join Home Depot in phasing out phthalates in flooring," added Igrejas.
The Ecology Center study on vinyl flooring tested high for toxic phthalates. It cited that of the 65 vinyl flooring tiles tested, 38 or about 58 percent contained the toxic materials. The vinyl flooring samples were bought from major home improvement stores including Home Depot, Lumber Liquidators and Lowe's.
So far, only Home Depot has acted to the challenge of improving the quality of the vinyl flooring material it sells.