10th December 2009

 Global study finds lead in 80% of house paint!
Children at risk of poisoning; safer substitutes available

A global study [1] of new household enamel paints sold in many retail outlets (including in South Africa) found that many paints contained high levels of lead. The study found lead concentrations exceeding the global benchmark of 90ppm in 65% of the South African enamel paint sampled.  Additionally 62 percent had lead concentrations more than the interim SA standard of 600 ppm (0.1 percent). The study also found safer paints with identical colors that did not contain lead. Brands tested included Plascon, Dulux, Prominent and Dekade paint.

Key findings of the study:

• The study analysed 29 enamel paint samples from 5 brands;
• 65% exceeded the current global benchmark for lead in paint (90 ppm);
• 62% exceeded the current South African lead in paint standard of 600ppm (which is inadequate compared to the global benchmark);
• The highest sample contained 195,289 ppm (19.5 percent) ppm lead, more than 2000 times greater than the global benchmark;
• Most of the Plascon and Dulux samples of paint wer below the global benchmark of 90ppm.

Lead causes irreversible nervous system damage and decreased intelligence at extremely low doses. Lead exposure in childhood has been associated with lower vocabulary and grammatical-reasoning scores, increased absenteeism, poorer eye-to-hand coordination, and lower class standing in high school. The U.S. EPA has determined that lead is a probable human carcinogen. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) Healthy Environments for Children Alliance, ‘there is no known safe blood lead level but it is known that, as lead exposure increases, the range and severity of symptoms and effects also increases.’[2] One of the largest causes of lead exposure is lead-contaminated dust from decaying paint. Lead ingestion and poisoning typically occurs through hand-to-mouth activity.

‘Lead threatens a child’s brain development and health’, reports the WHO. ‘Child lead poisoning should be taken seriously, and parents should be aware of possible pathways of exposure including lead paint in one’s home.’

‘Lead is a poison and it should not be present in paint or other products to which children are exposed,’ said Rico Euripidou. ‘Europe banned lead in paint in the 1920s. What are we waiting for when safer alternatives are available? We need to protect our children and eliminate lead from paint.’

The study comes on the heels of a global commitment to eliminate lead in paint in all countries. In May 2009, at the 2nd International Conference on Chemicals Management, South Africa was among more than 100 countries that endorsed a Global Partnership to Eliminate Lead from Paint [3].

In 2002, WHO’s ‘World Health Report’ identified lead exposure as one of twenty leading selected risk factors contributing to the global burden of disease and stated that worldwide, 40 percent of children have blood lead levels greater than 5 µg/dl, and that 97 percent of the affected children live in developing regions.

To address this lead threat, the groundWork, Friends of the Earth South Africa [4] together with the International POPs Elimination Network [5] and Toxics Link, have launched the ‘CHILDREN’S HEALTH FIRST: ELIMINATE LEAD PAINT’global campaign, which aims to both eliminate lead paint and promote safer alternatives via the Global Partnership to Eliminate Lead from Paint [6] under the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management.

End:

For more information:

Rico Euripidou, Research Manager, groundWork, Friends of the Earth, South Africa

+27-83-5193008

rico@groundwork.org.za   

Footnotes:

[1] Lead in new decorative paints: A Global Study

http://www.ipen.org/ipenweb/documents/work documents/global_paintstudy.pdf

[2] World Health Organization: Healthy Environments for Children Alliance (HECA) -

http://www.who.int/ceh/risks/cehchemicals2/en/index.html 

Brochure- http://www.who.int/heca/infomaterials/lead.pdf

[3] Lead in new decorative paints: A Global Study

http://www.ipen.org/ipenweb/documents/work%20documents/global_paintstudy.pdf

[4] groundWork is an environmental justice organisation working with community people from around South Africa and increasingly in Southern Africa, on environmental justice and human rights issues focusing on Air Pollution, Waste and Environmental Health.  See www.groundwork.org.za.  groundWork is the South Africa member of Friends of the Earth International and is affiliated to the International Persistent Organic Pollutants Elimination Network see www.ipen.org and the Global Anti Incineration Alliance (www.no-burn.org).

[5] The International POPs Elimination Network (IPEN) is a global public interest NGO network with more than 700 Participating Organizations in over 100 countries and in all regions. IPEN works with NGOs around the world toward a future where toxic chemicals no longer cause harm to human health or to the environment. www.ipen.org.

[6] IPEN: Eliminate Lead Paint Campaign: http://www.ipen.org/ipenweb/work/lead/lead_paint.html