“Perfect” Planned Community Forgot One Thing: Coal Tar Sealers

Green Light for Black Goo in Idyllic, Disney Community CELEBRATION, FLORIDA — Just in time for their 20th anniversary celebration, one of the nation’s premier planned communities is getting a new coat, not of paint, but of toxic coal tar pavement sealer. Soon after it opened it won a prestigious award as one of the […]

Could This Be a Safer Alternative to Coal Tar Based Sealants?

A freshly sealed parking lot is generally an improvement to any property — but unless that property happens to be in one of a few places, that fresh coat of black sealant is likely potentially deadly.   The following article is republished from Construction Equipment Guide with permission. This permission is not an endorsement by Construction […]

Cradle to Grave: An Inescapable Life with Coal Tar Sealers

I was shocked about what I learned about coal tar pavement sealers earlier this week. No this isn’t a guest writing here, but rather someone who has written over 300 posts on the topic.  (At full screen the above presentation should be self-running) I was speaking with Dan Chiles from Springfield, Missouri; former Mayor Pro […]

Study: What Doesn’t Kill You, Just Might Give You Cancer

Coal Tar Sealants Runoff Packed with Fast-Acting Toxins And Slow-Release Carcinogens Months After Application Sorry Kelly Clarkson, unfortunately “what doesn’t kill you, only makes you stronger” doesn’t apply to coal tar pavement sealers.  New research from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) leaves one wondering when it is safe to apply coal tar pavement sealants.  The report, Concentrations of […]

What Would’ve Happened if Brer Rabbit Didn’t Get the Coal Tar Off?

Perhaps I’m dating myself, but remember the old Uncle Remus story where Brer Rabbit, who was covered in tar, tricked Brer Fox into throwing him into a briar patch?  There he was able to scrape the tar off of himself.  But what would’ve happened if Brer Rabbit didn’t get the tar off? That question was […]

More Repetition Than Revelation in Coal Tar Sealer Industry’s New Bias Claims

A few weeks ago, representatives of the coal tar sealer industry came out with new claims of bias by USGS researchers.  Press releases, presentations and insider editorials were coordinated to push back on recent research by the USGS and Baylor University, which found high lifetime cancer risks when living near a coal tar sealed parking […]

Millions View “The Doctors” TV Show Exposing Toxic Coal Tar Driveways

Click on image to go to the Doctor’s website for more info. Yesterday millions of Americans tuned into CBS’ syndicated TV show, The Doctors, to see a segment on the dangers of coal tar pavement sealants.  It is the largest television audience ever to hear about this.  They discussed the findings of the Baylor University/USGS study […]

There’s A Time to Speak and A Time to be Silent

Springfield, Missouri continues to struggle to find a way forward from the current coal tar sealant debate.  I am all for an open debate as long as the participants attempt to be informed and speak without bias.  But if some haven’t really read the reports and attempt to speak as an expert, then please hold […]

The Dark Side of a Komen Cancer Walk

Someone has said once you learn about the problems of coal tar sealant that you will never cross a paved surface in the same way again. First the quick assessment: concrete or asphalt. Then you look for signs of sealant: a brushed-on boarder, the pungent smell similar to a telephone pole, and wear in the […]

Revealing the Breast Cancer to Coal Tar Connection

Even after 200 posts and 3 years writing on Coal Tar Free America, this is the first article I have written dedicated to the connection between coal tar’s big toxic ingredient, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and breast cancer.  And whose family and friends haven’t been affected by breast cancer?  If people only knew that a […]