Health: The authority on 'sick building syndrome' has been a consultant for the industry, documents show.
Jump to full article: Los Angeles Times, 1992-02-25
Author: MYRON LEVIN, TIMES STAFF WRITER
Intro: Gray Robertson has been called the "Building Doctor."
The 52-year-old British-born chemist and indoor pollution consultant is a much-quoted authority on "sick building syndrome" . . .
Robertson's views reflect those of the tobacco industry, which has long employed him as a consultant.
But Robertson, in town Monday to drum up business for Healthy Business International, his Fairfax, Va.-based consulting firm, sought to downplay his ties to the cigarette makers and at one point denied that he'd been an industry consultant. . . .
The tobacco industry for years has sought to put sick building syndrome on the issues map as a way of deflecting attacks on public smoking. And Robertson has long been part of that strategy, according to documents obtained by The Times. . . .
Asked at the end of his briefing if he had received tobacco funding, Robertson initially said he had merely inspected a few tobacco company buildings, as he had for dozens of clients.
In response to follow-up questions, he added that he done a small amount of tobacco-funded research and had twice testified for the industry--once before Congress, once before the National Academy of Sciences--and had disclosed that he was appearing at the industry's request. He denied being a tobacco industry consultant.
When he was shown the Tobacco Institute documents during a subsequent interview, Robertson responded: "If I've made appearances for people . . . I don't necessarily say I'm their consultant." . . .
Robertson said the Tobacco Institute had no involvement in his current West Coast tour. . . . The seminars are being sponsored by Envirosense, a coalition of a dozen businesses, including the world's biggest tobacco firm, Philip Morris.
Jump to full article » |