Jim Greer, the VP of Finance has left Calstar.

This follows the departure of the Director of Research, the CEO, and the Director of Marketing.

More evidence that Calstar is a Greenwash.

The radiation dose for the main radioisotopes – radon 226, thorium 232 and potassium 40 corresponds to a radium equivalent activity of 330 becquerel per kilogram. This compares with activities of 10-150 for soils, clays and rocks, and 90 for portland cement.

Worse still, the gamma index for fly ash is 1.2-1.3 – this is above the safe limit for building products (1.0) and compares with the values of 0.1-0.6 for soils, clays and rocks, and 0.35 for portland cement.

The fly ash that Calstar uses emits dangerous levels of alpha and gamma radiation – levels that are 2-12 times higher than for soils, clays and rocks, and 3-4 times higher than for portland cement.

Calstar – Greenwashing a toxic product.

Why is there no warranty against toxic metals leaching from the bricks/pavers?

Why is there no warranty against exposure to toxics contained in and leaching from the bricks/pavers?

Why is there no warranty against health and environmental hazards arising from the handling and installation of the bricks/pavers?

Why are the warranties much less than the industry standards for (concrete and clay) bricks and pavers?

With new products made from proven toxins? The same toxins now proven by the EPA to cause cancer and deformities in fish, children and adults?

Now to be used in homes, schools, hospitals and offices around the country? By a supposed “green” business that is funded by a utility / power company desperate to get rid of the toxins it produces?

From a company that evidently resorts to infantile personal attacks when confronted by facts from an R&D scientist? Whose CEO and Business Development Director jumped ship?

What universe is Calstar from?

http://calstarproducts.com/products/environmental-safety/

Calstar gives 10 year and 50 year limited warranties for their “pavers” and “bricks” respectively. These warranties are only for performance and not for product safety.

Calstar’s warranties are inferior to the standard 25 year, 50 year and lifetime warranties for concrete pavers and concrete bricks, and 50 year and lifetime warranties for clay pavers and clay bricks.

Why are Calstar’s products warranties inferior to those of concrete and clay products?

The answer is safety and durability. Calstars fly ash “bricks” and “pavers” leach out toxic metals, and are not durable – they are less hard, less shock and impact resistant, less abrasion resistant, less freeze-thaw resistant and less salt resistant than concrete and clay products.

And why is there no warranty for product safety?

Calstar offers no warranty with regards to the heavy metals and other toxics contained in their “bricks” and “pavers”. Why? The answer is simple – the products are not safe and Calstar’s own test data shows that the toxics leach out within a few hours.

They have now removed the non-existent elements from their document.

You are welcome Julie Rapoport aka “Green Arrow” aka “richtea” – Products Manager of Calstar!

Calstar’s hasty correction of their safety document poses the question – does this “mistake” in Calstar’s safety document indicate a pathetic attempt at data falsification? After all, how can Calstar’s R&D experts fudge something as trivial as chemical symbols – unless they are incompetent beyond belief, or they are (ineptly) fabricating data?

Calstar – the Greenwashing continues.

calstarproducts.com/pdf/fly_ash_overview.pdf

Calstar claims to have tested for 17 toxic metals, including the metals “Mb” and “Va”.

However, the elements “Mb” and “Va” do not exist.

Is Calstar so incompetent that it’s R&D lacks even the most basic understanding of chemistry?

Or is this more fabrication by Calstar?

How can one rely on anything this company claims, when their statements are full of wild inaccuracies and misrepresentations?

Calstar – the Greenwashed toxic “brick” company.

Fly ash is being used safely in two types of brick:

Firstly, fired bricks in which a small portion (less than 20%) of clay is replaced with fly ash. These are fired and are stable to leaching because fly ash components are contained within clay-derived glassy phases. Also, 100% fired fly ash bricks have been produced, and these appear to be similar in performance and safety to fired clay bricks.

Secondly, fly ash-lime-gypsum-cement bricks, which typically contain less than 40% fly ash and are autoclaved. In these, the lime/cement reacts with fly ash components, immobilizing them in silicate phases and preventing leaching of toxic components.

Calstar’s fly ash bricks are neither fired nor reacted with lime/cement. And, the fly ash they are produced from is known to leach toxic metals and is known to have poisoned ground water. Calstar knows this – see the report at

http://www.environmentalintegrity.org/news_reports/documents/INHARMSWAY_FINAL.pdf

Also, Calstar’s own tests show that their bricks leach a whole range of toxics in a matter of a few hours on contact with water. These toxics are soluble and can form a poisonous coating on the bricks, generate toxic dusts/particles, and can be disperse by incidental contact and by water transfer.

The problem is Calstar’s fly ash bricks. They are made from a hazardous raw material by a process which is known to produce a sub-standard and hazardous product.