Bill Would Change Taste of Antifreeze
Saying he hopes to protect children and animals--particularly endangered California condors-- from poisoning, Assemblyman Jack O’Connell (D-Carpinteria) has introduced a measure that would require manufacturers of antifreeze to make it taste bitter.
The most common form of antifreeze tastes very sweet, O’Connell said. When accidentally ingested by children and small animals, it can be fatal, he said.
Assembly Bill 1550 would require antifreeze manufacturers to use an agent to increase bitterness that would make it unpalatable to humans and animals, O’Connell said.
One of two endangered California condors released into the Sespe Condor Sanctuary north of Fillmore was found dead last fall. Biologists said the giant vulture died after finding a pool of antifreeze somewhere in the backcountry and ingesting it.
Several other California condors have since been released into the sanctuary, and are threatened unless action is taken, O’Connell said.
The bill will be assigned to a policy committee in the Assembly, where it will be scheduled for public hearings, O’Connell said.
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