Politicians and other concerned groups planning to give free school supplies were urged by an environment organization based in Quezon City to ensure that their donations are free from hazardous chemicals.
Aileen Lucero Acting National Coordinator of EcoWaste Coalition suggested that local government units (LGU), non-government organizations (NGO) and private companies secure a formal certification that their donations like school bags to the city’s poor sector are free from lead which experts found to cause brain damage.
“We appeal to generous givers from the public and private sectors to offer bags that have undergone lead safety tests to ensure that their gifts would not expose the recipients to lead,” Lucero said.
“The LGUs and other bag donors can demand a certification from their suppliers that their bags passed the limit for total lead content as analyzed by qualified government-accredited laboratories prior to procuring and giving away the items,” she added.
By requiring the suppliers to issue the certification, Lucero said that this will ensure that the school supplies are safe and will not contribute to the schoolchildren’s exposure to lead and other dangerous chemicals.
“As there are other chemicals aside from lead that may adversely affect children’s health, we also suggest that the bags be tested for other priority substances such as phthalates, which are commonly used as plasticizers in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic,” she added.
Phthalates are known endocrine disrupting chemicals.
Lucero’s appeal came in the aftermath of her group’s recent investigation that detected lead up to 5,752 parts per million (ppm) in 23 out of 25 kiddie backpacks, way above the 90 ppm limit in US for lead in paint and surface coatings.
Using an X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analyzer, EcoWaste researchers discovered excessive amounts of lead on the painted portions of some plastic backpacks, particularly on the designs, logos and the main materials of which the bags are made of.
The group said lead exposure can retard the development of a child’s developing central nervous system and permanently damage the brain even at low levels of exposure.
Lucero said that the effects of chemical absorption are not immediately detected stressing that there are no obvious symptoms until the blood lead level is very high.
Health studies have shown that childhood lead exposure can result to a broad range of serious developmental and behavioral problems, including reading and learning disabilities, inattentiveness, hyperactivity and irritability, lower IQ and poor school performance.
Lead can enter a human body mainly through the inhalation or ingestion of lead particles or dust from chipping or flaking paints in homes, playgrounds and other facilities and other lead-containing products such as toys and other children’s articles.
In his letter to the EcoWaste Coalition in 2011, Health Secretary Enrique Ona said that “clinical toxicologists have indicated that there are no safe levels for lead exposure among children.”
“This fact make banning of substances containing lead an imperative,” Ona said.
