Formica's Revenge

Those who have been readers of this blog for a while know of my fondness for "kitchen p0rn" -- those home improvement shows where they remodel a kitchen in an hour. I'm planning on making do with refaced cabinets (which I'm doing myself and which is turning into a lifetime project), a new floor, and new laminate countertops at some point, rather than going into debt for a new gourmet kitchen with stainless steel appliances, custom cabinets, imported tile floors and granite countertops.

I may still lust after beautiful kitchens, but in my current state of soon-to-be-joblessness, I'm grateful every day that I didn't succumb to the siren song of home equity loans in order to get as close to a dream kitchen as one can get in a 1950's cape cod house.

Now, suddenly, Wilsonart, or even butcher block, are looking a whole lot better and granite a lot less appealing:

As the popularity of granite countertops has grown in the last decade — demand for them has increased tenfold, according to the Marble Institute of America, a trade group representing granite fabricators — so have the types of granite available. For example, one source, Graniteland (graniteland.com) offers more than 900 kinds of granite from 63 countries. And with increased sales volume and variety, there have been more reports of “hot” or potentially hazardous countertops, particularly among the more exotic and striated varieties from Brazil and Namibia.

“It’s not that all granite is dangerous,” said Stanley Liebert, the quality assurance director at CMT Laboratories in Clifton Park, N.Y., who took radiation measurements at Dr. Sugarman’s house. “But I’ve seen a few that might heat up your Cheerios a little.”

Allegations that granite countertops may emit dangerous levels of radon and radiation have been raised periodically over the past decade, mostly by makers and distributors of competing countertop materials. The Marble Institute of America has said such claims are “ludicrous” because although granite is known to contain uranium and other radioactive materials like thorium and potassium, the amounts in countertops are not enough to pose a health threat.

Indeed, health physicists and radiation experts agree that most granite countertops emit radiation and radon at extremely low levels. They say these emissions are insignificant compared with so-called background radiation that is constantly raining down from outer space or seeping up from the earth’s crust, not to mention emanating from manmade sources like X-rays, luminous watches and smoke detectors.

That may very well be, but who wants additional, unnecessary radiation, when we're bombarded with so much every day anyway? It's somewhat amusing, however, to think about all of the suburban households in this country, populated by people who use antibacterial wipes, antibacterial detergents, who dress their kids in body armor before they can go out to play, living in states where kids have to be in car seats practically until they go to college -- blissfully unaware of how their beautiful kitchens may be irradiating those very same kids.