solidsurfacealliance.org Blog

The MIA is producing many brochures and website pages on the granite countertop and Radon/Radiation, few of which are entirely truthful.

Here are exerts from one, along with my comments in bold.

ANSWERS TO CUSTOMERS’ QUESTIONS ABOUT GRANITE COUNTERTOPS
Q: I was thinking about installing granite countertops in my home, but after reports I’ve seen (and/or read) recently, I’m having second thoughts. Are granite countertops safe?
A: Yes. Many of the reports are based on questionable science and provide misleading information which is taken out of context. Note the lack of supporting info, name one instance please.

If you want to know the real truth about granite, check studies that have been conducted over the years by well-respected scientists and independent research organizations. I guess if you consider being paid by the MIA to do the work independent
Study findings have been consistent: radon emissions from granite countertops aren’t even close to posing a health risk. But were the few samples picked for being low level? It’s true that samples can vary and some samples can be more of a source of radiation than others – but the highest emission rates ever reported in scientific literature result in concentrations that are hundreds of even thousands of times lower than the EPA’s guidelines. Hardly, we have been over this lie many times, Dr. Chyi’s finding of Crema Bordeaux was only 14 times lower than the EPA action level, and that study was hardly objective.
Q: I’m nervous about my granite countertops. I want you to rip them out of my kitchen right now
A: Be reassured that your granite countertops are every bit as safe as they are beautiful, practical and durable. They show someone waiving a Geiger counter over a granite countertop and it starts clicking. It’s definitely sensational – but totally meaningless. No, the presence of radiation shows the need to do further Radon testing. The Geiger counters and scintillators detect the daughter products of the Radon. Compared to the radiation levels of everyday things in our homes and neighborhoods, the radiation levels produced by granite countertops are minuscule. That is a bald faced lie. You may not realize that a Geiger counter will also click if you waive it over a smoke detector, many wristwatches, your television, your computer, a bowl of Brazil nuts or potatoes on your kitchen table, cinder block walls in your garage, or even many kinds of glazed pottery in your living room. Actually not many Radium watches are still ticking, few people spend much time around a smoke detector nor is the mass as large as a granite countertop, the TV and Computer put off electromagnetic radiation not ionizing radiation, Cinder blocks can be about the same radiation levels as low level granite countertops, and while I have yet to find any Brazil nuts to test, we have done testing on potatoes and can tell you that the MIA is lying through their teeth when they compare the unreadable radiation levels in potatoes to a granite countertop that is easily measured. There may be an odd plate or vase with radiation, yet no where near the mass of a granite countertop. An interesting point, the pottery industry will warn you about the issues, and tell you not to eat or drink off these items to prevent ingestion of uranium leached out of the glaze.

Q: So, you deny that granite countertops can cause radiation and give me and my family cancer?
A: The amount of radiation produced by the typical granite countertop is minuscule compared to things we have around our homes. Read above, an outright lie. None of the research studies of granite countertops has ever identified a single stone that poses any significant health threat. False, the MIA is aware of the work being done by Kitto, Steck, and Llope. They also know that the EPA has warned that some granite countertop materials have very high levels of uranium. While it’s true that samples can vary and some samples can be more of a source of radiation than others – the highest emission rates ever reported in respected scientific literature result in concentrations that are hundreds of even thousands of times lower than the EPA’s guidelines. Absolutely false, even the study the MIA paid for refutes their statement!
Q: Why would the media say that granite countertops are not safe if it isn’t true?
A: The sad truth is that consumer fears benefit companies that manufacture synthetic countertops, two of which are funding some of the fear-mongering efforts, and by radon detection consultants, who will benefit through the sale of their services. Actually, the Radon industry in general provided zero support till the last few weeks, even now there are a few remaining skeptics. One of the sponsors of Build Clean even quit the testing effort after attempting to hold back the testing effort. Build Clean is completely independent.Q: Why should I believe a word you say? You want to sell me a granite countertop!
A: I won’t deny that I’d love to sell you a granite countertop, but I would not sell you anything unless I was sure that you know that granite countertops are safe for you and your family. Note that they didn’t say that they were sure, they said “you know”. I have a home. I have a (wife/husband). And I have (# of children). Obvious this is a fill in the blank form letter or talking points that the MIA members are supposed to use to convince people to lay their hard earned money down.

They go on by trying to say every countertop emits some poisonous substance in varying amounts. Nice try….Here is the MIA web page where they say all this and more.