Nano Silver May Be Envionment's Silver Bullet [Nano]

Mark Wilson — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 10:00:00 EST

The UK's Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution has recently released a report urging for more study of nano-engineered materials, warning that there is a "major gap" in our knowledge of this technology. We've covered the potential dangers of carbon nanotubes here before, but the commission also warns about nano silver, an antibacterial particle that can be found in a variety of clothing, like socks. And in fact, the commission Chair refuses to wear such clothing at all:

I wouldn't recommend nanosilver clothes and I wouldn't wear them myself. At the moment the concentrations are way below anything likely to do damage, but if it became common, it could lead to problems.

The big problems could be not just on your body directly, but what happens if the silver leaves the clothing during wash cycles. If the nano silver leaks into our water supply, it could kill good bacteria we need for purification, let alone create havoc through unpredicted effects.

The commission would like to see full disclosure of nanomaterials in manufacturing become mandatory, but they warn it could be 20 years before we have enough data to deem many of these materials safe or hazardous. [BBC via Treehugger]

Group Sues EPA For Not Regulating Nano-Silver Pollution [Nanomaterials]

Elaine Chow — Sun, 04 May 2008 17:30:00 EDT

Those nano-silver socks you've been using to soak up the rank of your athlete's foot—not only are they leaching poisons into fish habitats every time you wash them, their effects on your own blood stream could be just as bad; but the EPA's not doing anything about it. Fed up by government inaction, a consumer safety group is now suing the EPA for failing to regulate nanomaterials.

Silver has long been known to have antimicrobial powers, and with nanotech (and better hygiene) being all the rage, companies have added nanoparticle silver to everything from children's toys to washing machines. But as elements get smaller, the way they react to their environments change—and nobody's sure that itty bitty silver pieces aren't going to kill us all.

Studies have already shown that nano-silver is screwing with fishes and destroying benign bacteria at wastewater facilities. The legal petition asks the EPA to regulate nano-silver as a pesticide, insist on product labels, and analyze the potential human health effects (especially on children) before allowing nano-silver goods to be sold.

So unless you absolutely have no other way of keeping things clean and smell-free, lay off the nano-silver for now, mmkay? [ICTA via NY Times]

Gizmodo: nano-silver

Nano Silver May Be Envionment's Silver Bullet [Nano]

Group Sues EPA For Not Regulating Nano-Silver Pollution [Nanomaterials]