According to James Harmon's Integrated Pest Management manual, PDB is no
longer available for sale in
the U.S., and Naphthalene is, at least now, the primary ingredient in
mothballs, but it
also carries health hazards.  Non-chemical pest treatments might be worth
investigating.  Also, at the 1995 AIC conference, during Wendy Jessup's
and Monona Rossol's presentation on pest management (which Ms. Rossol was
not present for), an analysis of pelts in one collection revealed, along
with other chemicals, residual PDB.  I THINK, that the most danger for
this is in fatty tissues.  So your staff might also want to use caution
in handling some of the materials that have been treated with PDB.  If
you want specific citations, e-mail me directly.

Rachel Ward
Paper Conservation Technician
Missouri Secretary of State's Office
[log in to unmask]
All opinions are solely my own and not my employer's.

On Sat, 3 Feb 1996, Anita Cohen-Williams wrote:

> Wait a minute! Isn't the common name for paradichlorobenzene, "mothballs"? And
> haven't people all over the U.S. been using these mothballs for over a hundred
> years? I have yet to see any scientific reports that link cancer to mothballs
> in closets. (Not to say there haven't been any, I just haven't seen any.) Let
> me check MEDLINE and get back to you.
>
> Anita Cohen-Williams; Reference Services; Hayden Library
> Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ  85287-1006
> PHONE: (602) 965-4579              FAX: (602) 965-9169
> [log in to unmask]  Owner: HISTARCH, SPANBORD, SUB-ARCH
>