Not All States Allow TBT-Based Paints

From January 31, 1991 (update #6)

Tributyltin (TBT) paints are being widely used in Ohio to prevent zebra mussels from attaching to aluminum surfaces of recreational boats in Lake Erie, but the sale and use of such organotin-paints are banned in Michigan. In Wisconsin, only "slow release" TBT paints are currently available for sale, and these paints legally may be used only on aluminum boat parts or on boats at least 65 feet long, according to Russell Dunst, toxics coordinator for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources' Office of Technical Services. TBT-based paints are highly toxic to a wide variety of aquatic organisms, which led to a total ban on the use of fast-release TBT compounds by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Dunst said Wisconsin adopted its present use restrictions on TBT-based paints in 1988 and about the same time began monitoring TBT concentrations in marina areas throughout the state. TBT levels in marina waters dropped between 1988 and 1989 - indicating that the current restrictions were helping protect aquatic life from the toxic effects of these paints - though further monitoring was recommended. For more information regarding TBT use in Wisconsin, contact Dunst at (608) 266-9255.

ID: 19910131-8.

The Zebra Mussel Update was a 4- to 8-page quarterly national newsletter published by the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant Institute from May 1990 through May 1997. The ZMU documented the spread of the zebra mussel -- an exotic nuisance mussel -- through North America's freshwater environments, especially the Great Lakes, and on efforts to control it.