I was happy to read in the newspaper of Friday, April 8 that the Maine House of Representatives had voted to ban bisphenol-A from children’s products sold in Maine.

The dangers of this product have been well-established and widely published, our governor’s cavalier comments notwithstanding.

Then I read a statement from one of the three representatives who voted against the ban.

I could scarcely believe my eyes. Helen Sirocki, a Republican from Scarborough, said, “The reason I do not support this bill is not because I think BPA is safe; rather I support keeping BPA in the marketplace because it is a well-known additive, and I am not convinced that a safe alternative is market-ready.”

Wow.

In other words, Sirocki supports keeping products on the market that endanger our children until manufacturers are good and ready to replace them.

Let’s see. Given the cost of bringing new products to market, if this philosophy were to prevail, we would wait a long spell indeed for any dangerous products to be replaced.

I can only hope that Sirocki’s callous attitude does not infect the Senate, which is yet to vote on this bill.

Don Robbins

Sidney