QUEZON CITY — To inform and guide Filipino consumers in picking paints that will not cause lead exposure, especially among children, the EcoWaste Coalition released a list of independently certified Lead Safe® paints that are available in the local market.
The toxics watchdog group released the list as the country’s public schools gear up for the yearly school cleanup and repair activities, dubbed as the Brigada Eskwela, starting July 22 to 27. Local government units, parents, and volunteers from various sectors usually donate paints in support of the Brigada Eskwela led by the Department of Education (DepEd).
According to DepEd Order No. 4, series of 2017, the “use of only lead safe coatings or paints shall be mandatory to all pre-school, elementary and secondary schools,” noting the “use of lead-safe paint shall reduce children’s exposure to toxic lead via lead-containing paint and thus, thus, avoiding health impacts including learning disabilities, anemia and disorders in coordination, visual, spatial, and language skills.”
The said order also stated, “the use of independently certified lead-safe paints/coatings shall be mandatory to all painting and/or repainting works of school facilities, furniture, fixtures, learning materials, tools, and equipment.” The EcoWaste Coalition pushed for the adoption of the said policy during the term of then Education Secretary Leonor Briones to ensure school children are protected from lead-containing paint and dust, a major source of childhood lead exposure.
US-based SCS Global Services, which manages the Lead Safe Paint® (or LSP®) certification program, provided the EcoWaste Coalition with the list of certified lead-safe paints. Under this program, the certification body verifies and confirms a product’s compliance to the 90 parts per million (ppm) legal limit for lead in paints under the DENR A.O. 2013-24, or the Chemical Control Order (CCO) for lead and its compounds. The 90 ppm limit is the strictest regulatory standard for lead content in paint across the globe and is also the recommended limit under the UN Model Law and Guidance for Regulating Lead Paint.
Paint products that have been certified by SCS Global Services are authorized to put the LSP® logo on the paint cans, giving assurance to consumers that the paint they are buying conforms with the 90 ppm lead in paint limit.
The LSP® list contains a total of 235 products manufactured by leading paint manufacturers, which are available in a wide array of uses and colors. The list is expected to grow as more companies voluntarily apply to get certified. The list can be downloaded at:
https://www.ecowastecoalition.org/certified-lead-safe-paints-ph-list/
Included in the list are paint products from the following manufacturers:
- Pacific Paint (Boysen) Philippines, Inc.
Certified paint brands: Boysen, Nation, Titan, Virtuoso Silk2. Davies Paints Philippines, Inc.
Certified paint brand: Davies3. Sycwin Coating & Wires, Inc.
Certified brands: Guilder, PureCoat Advance, PureCoat Premium, WeatherGard)4. Asian Coatings Philippines, Inc.
Certified paint brands: Rain or Shine, Alpha Chroma, Arkhon, Welcoat)5. Roosevelt Chemical Inc./Triton Paints
Certified paint brands: Triton (five categories), Acri-Lux, Lotus, Primecoat, Rosco6. FH Colors & Coatings Corp./A-Plus Paints
Certified paint brands: A-Plus, Glazer, Hanscoat, KaliNot all paints that conform with the 90 ppm regulatory standard are on the LSP® list, the EcoWaste Coalition clarified, as the LSP® certification program is a voluntary certification scheme.
Most companies, especially those affiliated with the Philippine Paint & Coatings Association, Inc. (PPCAI; formerly Philippine Association of Paint Manufacturers), have shifted to non-lead raw materials and are producing compliant paints with no lead added, the EcoWaste Coalition pointed out. Also, the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) has stopped issuing importation clearance for lead compounds used in paint manufacturing in line with the CCO.
However, some paint products being sold in the market may still contain violative levels of lead, the EcoWaste Coalition warned. The group, for instance, has detected high concentrations of lead in some paints sourced from China and Thailand, including products with “lead-free” claim or “No Pb” pictogram on the label (Pb is the chemical symbol for lead).
The Lead Safe Paint® Certification program was developed by the International Pollutants Elimination Network (IPEN) in consultation with stakeholders such as the PPCAI and the EcoWaste Coalition. It is independently managed by SCS Global Services, the certification body, and both IPEN and the EcoWaste Coalition do not receive any type of revenue from the program.
