Tainted Chinese Drywall Contaminating U.S. Homes

If the US housing market doesn’t have enough problems already, it now has an additional one from thousands of miles away. Drywall imported from China has been found to contain contaminants that can form corrosive sulfuric acid, creating a new worry for home-owners. Affected houses often smell like rotten eggs and home dwellers suffer a slew of health problems – from relatively benign runny noses to acute sinus infections. While the number of regions affected by the defective dry wall has not been identified, one lawyer preparing a class action suit believes every state could be affected. Apart from the risk to human health, this article brings to light the growing sense of doubt about the quality of Chinese products. From toys to baby formula, pet food to paint, the “Made in China” brand is under increasing critical scrutiny. What’s unusual about this case is that the drywall, though manufactured in China, carries the brand name of a firm headquartered in Germany, though some Chinese government ownership is likely. With the global economic crisis already threatening heightened protectionism, defective products and insufficient oversight could only add fuel to the fire to the call to limit imports from the one country that may lead the world out of the crisis. – YaleGlobal