Souvenir items tainted with toxic chemicals—Ecowaste Coalition

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MANILA, Philippines — Tourists may actually get more out of souvenir items they buy from gift shops after an environment watch group found high concentrations of toxic metals, particularly lead, present in a hundred products sold in four of the country’s major tourist hubs.

Ecowaste Coalition urged the government to step in and ensure that souvenir items sold in Manila as well as in Davao, Cebu, and Baguio Cities are made of non-toxic materials so they would not pose a health risk to tourists.

Out of 127 souvenir products that Ecowaste bought from July 22 through July 31 and tested using a portable X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) spectrometer, a hundred were found to contain lead, antimony, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, and mercury above levels of concern. Over 90 of the samples had lead above the US limit of 90 parts per million (ppm) in paints and surface coatings with a P39 shot glass bought from Davao City having the most content of the toxic metal at 36,900 ppm.

Other keepsakes which the group found to contain high levels of lead and other toxic chemicals include: refrigerator magnets, souvenir ballpens, cellphone trinkets, coin purses, key chains, pen or pencil holders, toy ukuleles and wall decors sold for P7.50 to P220 each.

Ecowaste’s Project Protect coordinator Thony Dizon said that the lead content was traced in the paint used on the souvenir products.

“While not necessarily made and marketed for kids, these colorful and petite keepsakes could end up with children who love to explore and play with things,” he warned and added, “Lead is released as toxic dust as the product ages and then swallowed by children through their casual hand-to-mouth behavior, damaging their health even at very low doses.”

Citing the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), Ecowaste has warned that lead is toxic even at very low exposure levels and can have “neurological, cardiovascular, renal, gastrointestinal, haematological, and reproductive effects.” Lead and its compounds can cause irreversible brain and nervous system damage, reduced intelligence, learning disabilities and behavioral problems, according to Ecowaste.

Cadmium, according to UNEP, is a toxic metal that could adversely affect the kidneys and the human skeleton. It also warns that cadmium is a “carcinogen by inhalation and is accumulated in the bone and may serve as a source of exposure later in life.”

Lead, chromium, cadmium, arsenic, and mercury are in the World Health Organization’s list of 10 chemicals of major public health concern and in the country’s priority chemicals list.

During its tests, Ecowaste found 14 of 25 souvenir items from Baguio City tainted with toxic chemicals including a P70 pen holder with 5,571 ppm of lead and a P30 pencil design key chain with 4,982 ppm of lead.

The group discovered the presence of toxic chemicals in 30 of 34 tested products bought from Cebu City, including a toy ukulele worth P220 with 13,900 ppm of lead. In Davao City, 39 of 43 items were found to be toxic including a shot glass with the highest lead content.

In Manila, 17 of 25 samples were found to have toxic chemicals including a P65 “weapons of Moro land” wall decor with 16,800 ppm of lead and a P23 passenger jeepney design refrigerator magnet with 9,521 ppm of lead.

Ecowaste observed that none of the souvenir items had complete product labels including information about their chemical ingredients.

The group appealed to souvenir makers to switch to lead-free paint for their products and to properly label them. They further urged the government to prohibit the use of lead and other toxic metals in the keepsakes, and conduct a public information drive on the hazards of exposure to toxic chemicals.