For related articles and more information, please visit OCA’s Environment and Climate Resource Center page, Politics and Democracy page, and our Illinois News page.

Reacting with outrage to the Chicago Tribune’s investigation of deceptive tactics that have fueled the rise of toxic flame retardants in American homes, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin on Thursday demanded answers from two federal agencies, urging them to act aggressively to rid homes of chemicals that pose health risks but don’t stave off fires.

“The Tribune investigation makes it clear that this life-threatening issue has been swamped by self-serving chemical companies and lack of aggressive oversight by our government,” Durbin, D-Ill., wrote to the heads of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

The Tribune’s series, “Playing With Fire,” documented a decades-long campaign of deception by industry interests that has loaded the furniture and electronics in American homes with pounds of toxic chemicals linked to cancer, neurological deficits, developmental problems and impaired fertility.