Pet Safety / Compounds / Copper chromium arsenate (CCA) treated wood preservative

Is Copper chromium arsenate (CCA) treated wood preservative safe for dogs and cats?

High risk for pets

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GHS Danger classification. Dogs lack metabolic pathways to detoxify many synthetic chemicals. Acute lethality risk from accidental ingestion.

What is copper chromium arsenate (cca) treated wood preservative?

The IUPAC name is barium(2+);dioxido(dioxo)chromium.

Also known as: barium(2+);dioxido(dioxo)chromium, BARIUM CHROMATE, Permanent Yellow, Lemon chrome.

IUPAC name
barium(2+);dioxido(dioxo)chromium
CAS number
10294-40-3
Molecular formula
BaCrO4
Molecular weight
253.32 g/mol
SMILES
[Ba++].[O-][Cr]([O-])(=O)=O
PubChem CID
25136

Risk for dogs

High risk

GHS Danger classification. Dogs lack metabolic pathways to detoxify many synthetic chemicals. Acute lethality risk from accidental ingestion.

Risk for cats

High risk

GHS Danger classification. Cats lack metabolic pathways to detoxify many synthetic chemicals. Acute lethality risk from accidental ingestion.

Regulatory consensus

2 regulatory and scientific bodies have classified Copper chromium arsenate (CCA) treated wood preservative. The classifications differ — that's the data.

AgencyYearClassificationNotes
EPA CTX / Genetox—Genotoxicity: positive (single report) (Ames: None, 1 positive / 1 negative reports)
EPA CTX / Genetox—Genotoxicity: positive (single report) (Ames: None, 1 positive / 1 negative reports)
IARC2012Group 1Copper chromium arsenate (CCA) is carcinogenic through its arsenic content (arsenic and inorganic arsenic compounds — IARC Group 1) and its hexavalent-chromium content (chromium(VI) compounds — IARC Group 1), IARC Monographs Vol 100C (2012). Filled 2026-07-02 (D-300, Batch C).

Regulators apply different standards of evidence — animal-data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds — which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. The disagreement is the data.

Where pets encounter copper chromium arsenate (cca) treated wood preservative

  • Contaminated Water — Mining site runoff, Industrial discharge, Old infrastructure
  • Food Chain — Fish from contaminated waters, Crops in contaminated soil

Safer alternatives

Lower-risk approaches that achieve a similar outcome to Copper chromium arsenate (CCA) treated wood preservative:

  • Process redesign to avoid hazardous intermediates
    Trade-offs: May require significant R&D investment. Not always feasible.
    Relative cost: 2-5×

Frequently asked questions

Is copper chromium arsenate (cca) treated wood preservative safe for pets?

GHS Danger classification. Dogs lack metabolic pathways to detoxify many synthetic chemicals. Acute lethality risk from accidental ingestion.

What products contain copper chromium arsenate (cca) treated wood preservative?

Copper chromium arsenate (CCA) treated wood preservative appears in: Mining site runoff (Contaminated water); Industrial discharge (Contaminated water); Fish from contaminated waters (Food chain); Crops in contaminated soil (Food chain).

Why do regulators disagree about copper chromium arsenate (cca) treated wood preservative?

Copper chromium arsenate (CCA) treated wood preservative has been classified by 2 agencies including EPA CTX / Genetox, IARC, with differing conclusions. Regulators apply different standards of evidence (animal data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds), which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. See the regulatory consensus table on this page for the full picture.

See Copper chromium arsenate (CCA) treated wood preservative in the pets app

Look up products containing copper chromium arsenate (cca) treated wood preservative, compare to alternatives, and explore the full data record.

Open in pets View raw API data

Sources (5)
  1. PubChem Compound CID 25136 — database
  2. EPA CompTox Chemicals Dashboard — DTXSID1051517 — epa
  3. ATSDR Toxicological Profile — CAS 10294-40-3 — reference
  4. IARC Monographs Volume 100C (2012) — Arsenic and inorganic arsenic compounds (Group 1) (2012) — regulatory
  5. IARC Monographs Volume 100C (2012) — Chromium (VI) compounds (Group 1) (2012) — regulatory

Reference data, not professional advice. Aggregates publicly available regulatory and scientific data; not a substitute for veterinary, medical, legal, or regulatory advice. Why we built ALETHEIA →