Pink Fire Retardant
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News: Authorities in the United States are using planes to drop pink fire retardant to curb the Southern California Wildfires. 

About Pink Fire Retardant 

Pink Fire Retardant
Source- The Indian Express
  • Fire retardant is a mix of chemicals used to extinguish or slow down the spread of fires. 
  • Authorities in the US most commonly rely on Phos-Chek, a type of fire retardant, that mostly contains an ammonium phosphate-based slurry. 
    • Generally, it is made of salts such as ammonium polyphosphate, which do not evaporate easily like water and stay for longer. 
    • Phos-Chek appears pink as pink color is added to it to improve visibility.
  • Color is added to the fire retardant to enable the firefighters to see against the landscape. 
    • This helps them create fire lines around the fire retardant, thus saving lives and properties. 
  • Experts have argued that spraying fire retardants is ineffective, expensive and leads to water pollution. 
  • A study found that Phos-Chek is laden with toxic metals like chromium and cadmium that can cause diseases like cancer in humans.  
  • Even the effectiveness of Phos-Chek is increasingly being questioned. 

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