AUSTRALIA LAUNCHES A NO LEAD INTERACTIVE WEBSITE

The LEAD Group, environmental NGO, is pleased to announce the launch this weekend of a new web site, ‘Lead Safe World’ (www.leadsafeworld.com), in partnership with Evo Building Products, the National Painting & Decorating Institute of Australia (NPDI), Aussie Painters Network, Home Painters Info and Lead Safe America Foundation.

The new site is part of The LEAD Group’s Lead Safe World Project – and its major contribution to the World Health Organization’s Inaugural International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week of Action 20-26 Oct 2013. “The site will promote lead safety actions everyone can take, rather than being a broad-ranging archive of information about the history of lead, the health effects of lead, sources of lead contamination, etc., as our existing web site is (www.lead.org.au),” says Elizabeth O’Brien, President of The LEAD Group.

“The Project will assist in the promotion of products and services which are lead-free or lead-safe, or which remove lead from the body, or from a lead-polluted site,” she says.

“Companies and products which help manage lead poisoning and lead contamination will be easily-identified by Logos: ‘Lead free’, ‘Lead safe’ and ‘Lead away.’

“Our existing web site will remain a tremendous source of information”, says Ms O’Brien, “but this new site will concentrate on solutions: preventing lead poisoning and contamination and removing lead contamination or lead from the body, all in one convenient, concentrated ‘package’ of information, companies, and products.”

“We are inviting partnerships with organisations and companies with appropriate solutions to lead problems, lead-free products and lead-safe services, to join us.”

Ms O’Brien also announced the launch of a 2014 Lead-Safe World Calendar, for sale at http://volcanoartprize.com/purchase-calendar/ - each month of the year is illustrated by a winning art entry on the subject of lead safety.

The Vol 14 No 1 issue of LEAD Action News went online today too, atwww.leadsafeworld.com/media/newsletters/201310.pdf, and lists some of the media coverage of the WHO Lead Week of Action in 17 countries, including the USA.

Despite Australia being the world’s largest lead exporter, every level of government, every agency, every politician has left marking the Week of Action in Australia, up to The LEAD Group and its Lead Safe World Partners.

GOODNEWS:FRACKING BANNED IN FRANCE

PARIS –  France's constitutional council  upheld a law banning fracking in France last October this year, keeping in place a law that had been a centerpiece of the Socialist president's campaign.

Activists say fracking, also known as hydraulic fracturing, is disastrous for the environment, spewing dirty water, fouling the air and sickening people and animals. France banned the practice in 2011 over the objections of the oil industry.

Fracking — sending a pressurized mix of water, sand and chemicals into shale to release the gas — has changed the energy landscape. Its use in the United States upended energy markets and led to wholesale prices for Americans that are about a third of what customers in Europe pay.

European Union lawmakers on Wednesday voted to require environmental studies from companies that want to use fracking.

LEAD IN PAINT A REALITY IN AFRICA-THE CASE OF TANZANIA

Lead is a naturally occurring bluish-gray metal found in the earth's crust.
Prior to our current knowledge of the health hazards of lead, it has been
widely used in products such as gasoline, batteries, metal products,
crystal, food cans, fishing sinkers and ammunition. It is also contained in
paints. It is well known for its anti-corrosive properties and has been
extensively used in construction industry. This Blogg caught
up with Executive Secretary for AGENDA, Silvani Mng'anya. AGENDA promotes a
culture of responsibility to the environment amongst the general public
through advocacy, capacity building and stakeholders' involvement in
Tanzania and beyond. Here he explains about Lead, its uses, laws governing
Lead and its associated health challenges:



QUESTION: Is there lead paint in Tanzania?
ANSWER: First of all, lead paint is any paint that relies on lead compounds
for drying or for its colour. Usually lead is added to paints to speed up
drying after application to surfaces, maintain fresh appearance, and resist
moisture that causes corrosion. Some amount of lead is also associated with
the raw materials.

Today paints are still sold with added lead in developing countries and
countries with economies in transition such as Tanzania, South Africa,
Nigeria, Senegal, India and China. This was demonstrated during a Global
Study on Lead in Paint in 2009 conducted by Toxics Link, the International
POPs Elimination Network (IPEN) in collaboration with NGOs in the countries.
AGENDA for Environment and Responsible Development was amongst the partners
who participated in the study mentioned above. It collected 20 samples of
oil based paint available in Tanzanian market. 19 out of 20 paints had lead
levels above 450 ppm.

Q: What does the law say about lead paint in Tanzania?

A: During the study in 2009 and a follow-up one in 2012, it was noted that
there is a voluntary standard set by Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS)
which indicates lead in paint should not exceed 450 ppm or 0.045 percent.
Also the Industrial and Consumer Chemicals Act No. 3 of 2003 Sect. 30 (1),
supports the restriction, banning and elimination of all proven dangerous
and toxic chemicals to human health and environment and chemicals which are
subjected to action according to international Convention or Treaty ratified
in the United Republic of Tanzania. There are no specific laws or
regulations on lead in paint in Tanzania.

Q: Are there such laws in other countries?

A: Most developing countries and countries with economy in transition do not
have regulations on the amount of lead in paint or only have voluntary
standard in place.

Q: If that is the case, why lead is of health concern?

A: Human exposure to lead is mainly through inhalation, ingestion, or in a
small number of cases, absorption through the skin - it is a poison. Lead
has the same affinity for our biological systems as essential minerals such
as iron, calcium and zinc. Lead causes harm wherever it deposits in the
body. In the blood stream, for example, it damages red blood cells and
limits their ability to carry oxygen to tissues and organs. Most lead ends
up in the bones, where it interferes with the production of blood cells and
the absorption of calcium that bone needs to grow healthy and strong.

Q: Who are the most vulnerable?

A: Young children, as their growing bodies absorb lead more easily than
adults. Even low level of lead exposure may harm their intellectual
development, growth, behaviour and hearing. During pregnancy for example,
especially in the last trimester, lead can cross the placenta and affect the
unborn child. Female workers exposed to high levels of lead have higher risk
of miscarriages and still births. People with occupational exposure to lead,
like painters, renovators, workers in refineries and smelters, have higher
risk of lead poisoning.

Q: What are lead poisoning symptoms?

A: Lead poisoning has no obvious signs, and most children do not report any
abnormal symptoms. Children with high levels of lead in their bodies might
report stomach-aches or exhibit decreased appetite, hyperactivity, sleeping
problems or irritability. Because these symptoms appear to mimic other
childhood problems, lead poisoning is sometimes mistaken for a cold or flue.
Other symptoms range from vomiting to madness to death.

Q: How to tell if a child has been poisoned by Lead?

A: Lead poisoning is only diagnosed through a blood test. A doctor or nurse
takes blood sample from a child. The sample is taken to medical laboratory
for analysis to find out the amount of lead in the blood and recommend the
action to be taken, if necessary.

Q: What about awareness about lead paint in Tanzania

A: A number of Government Ministries, Departments and its Agencies staff and
industrial managers are aware that some paints contain lead. However,
distributers, sellers and painters lack such awareness.

Q: What does lead stakeholders say about eliminating lead paints in Tanzania

A: Stakeholders' views include observation of the standard set by the
Tanzania Bureau of Standards on lead paint by producers as a starting point
and awareness raising on the fact that some paints contain lead; and the way
of preventing exposure and absorption to humans. They are also promoting
awareness and availability of the alternative material to lead for paint
production, elimination of lead paint to be on gradual basis and establish
guidelines addressing lead paints in relation to Industrial and Consumer
Chemicals Act No. 3 of 2003 to include controls on importation of lead
contained materials.

Q: What are the international initiatives already taken to reduce lead
exposure to health

A: A number of bans of lead paint happened across North America, Western
Europe, Asia and Africa over the past 70 years; for example lead has been
eliminated in gasoline in most countries. This was carried out on gradual
basis.

As for reduction of the level of lead paint-The International Conference on
Chemical Management at its Second Session (ICCM2, Geneva, 11-15 May 2009)
endorsed a proposal from Toxics Link, an IPEN participating organization
from India, to establish a global partnership to promote the phase-out of
the use of lead in paint as an important contribution to the implementation
of paragraph 57 of the plan of Implementation of the World Summit on
Sustainable Development (WSSD) and to the Strategic Approach to
International Chemicals Management (SAICM).

The overall goal of the partnership, called the Global Alliance to Eliminate
Lead Paints (GAELP), to prevent children's exposure to lead via paints
containing lead and to minimize occupational exposures to lead paints. The
broad objective is to phase out the manufacture and sale of paints
containing lead and eventually to eliminate the risks from such paint. The
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Health
Organization (WHO) within their respective mandates and available resources
are serving as the Secretariat of the Global Alliance.

Q: How can we minimize the exposure to lead in paint?

A: lead in paint can be minimized by cleaning up paint chips and peeling
paint by wet washing, washing floors, counter tops and window sills
regularly with an all-purpose detergent, feeding children a healthy diet
that includes recommended amounts of iron, calcium and vitamin C and has
lower amount of fat and offering children health meals and snacks, such as
fruits so they will not put non-food items into their mouths. Other means
include using proper safety measures when renovating or remodelling a house,
like not using electric sanders or open flame torches to remove paints,
assuring that children and pregnant women do not enter a work area until
renovations are complete and the area has been thoroughly cleaned, washing a
child's hands, mouth and face, and toys often and removing shoes when coming
indoors so that lead dust is not tracked inside.


Also in the list are laundering work clothes separately from other clothes,
not serving or storing food in ceramic ware or other lead containing posts
and pans and stop burning waste oil, coloured newsprint, battery casings or
wood covered with paint in or near your home, as this could release lead
fumes.

Q: Suppose one is poisoned by lead, how can such a person be treated?
A: There is no effective treatment for lead poisoning. However, in extreme
cases, doctors may use chelaton drugs to treat children or adults with very
high blood lead levels. These medications are generally given in the
hospital either through intravenous or intramuscular injections or by mouth.


The medicine attaches to the lead in the blood and causes it to come out of
the body in the urine. If the lead level is very high, more than one
treatment session may be necessary to lower the amount of lead in the blood.
Even with treatment, lead takes a very long time to be removed from the body
and some of its effects may be permanent. Children with elevated blood
levels will need to live in a safe environment and be monitored repeatedly
for many years.

IS GENDER PARITY A REALITY?-THE PLIGHT OF WOMEN IN BOTSWANA

In August this year, a five-year legal struggle ended with a landmark victory for women’s rights in Botswana. The country’s highest court unanimously decided that four sisters are entitled to inherit their family home.

At the center of the case was Edith Mmusi, an 80-year-old widow. Mmusi had lived in the family home since 1991 and had used her own money to renovate and build on it.

But in 2007 her nephew took legal action in the customary courts. He claimed that under law he was entitled to inherit the property—even though he had never lived there. Edith and her sisters argued that this would violate the Constitution and the Customary Law Act.

Last year, Botswana’s High Court found that the customary rule violated the guarantee of equal protection in the Constitution. But Mmusi’s nephew appealed, and last month the Court of Appeals held that the homestead belonged to Mmusi and her sisters. This unanimous decision from the country's highest court is the first to affirm gender equality under customary law.

Although the Constitution prohibits gender discrimination, it exempts all laws addressing “adoption, marriage, divorce, burial, devolution of property on death or other matters of personal law” from this prohibition. This kind of exemption is often referred to as a “clawback clause” and can be found in a number of constitutions throughout southern Africa, including in Lesotho and Swaziland. It is often invoked to justify blatant gender discrimination.

But the court found that such exemptions “are not unchecked. They must be rational and justifiable either as being intended to ensure that the rights and freedoms of any individual do not prejudice the rights and freedoms of others or as being in the public interest.”  The court found that denying Mmusi her property would not be in the public interest, and it would not harm the rights and freedoms of others.

The court left no doubt about the future of discriminatory customary law, stating: “Any customary law or rule which discriminates in any case against a woman unfairly solely on the basis of her gender would not be in accordance with humanity, morality or natural justice. Nor would it be in accordance with the principles of justice, equity and good conscience.”

Customary law, the court said, is flexible and evolves over time to keep pace with changing social mores. The court noted great changes in society over the last 30 years, including the “values of equality before the law, and the increased leveling of the power structures with more and more women heading households and participating with men as equals.” As a result, it found that “there is no rational and justifiable basis for sticking to the narrow norms of days gone by.”

This ruling will also safeguard public health in Botswana. Equal access to property is inextricably linked to HIV. Without access to property, women are more likely to fall into poverty, limiting their ability to protect themselves from HIV infection or to seek treatment.

In 2011 the Global Commission on HIV and the Law found that a rights-respecting legal environment can reduce the number of people infected with HIV by almost one million by 2030. In order to foster this environment, the Commission recommended that all countries reform property and inheritance laws to ensure that women and men have equal access.

This victory is a significant step towards ensuring men and women have equal access to property and inheritance in Botswana, and thus towards more effectively addressing HIV. The decision should be an example of how to protect human rights and public health in other countries in the region with similar clawback clauses.

UNEP REPORT ON LEAD POISONING OCTOBER 2013

UNEP/IPEN Report

UNEP yesterday released in Nairobi the report LEAD IN ENAMEL DECORATIVE PAINTS, NATIONAL PAINT TESTING RESULTS: A NINE COUNTRY STUDY. The report was prepared for UNEP by IPEN. The study was organized by IPEN in cooperation with partner NGOs in the nine countries. More information on the report is on the home page of the IPEN web site at http://www.ipen.org/.

NGO colleagues in the nine countries are also announcing the report’s national findings and data to their national media. The only press coverage of national data we know about so far is from Tunisia:

Kapitalis (Tunisia)

“About 30 paint samples purchased in Tunisia and tested, 21 (70%) content than the international standard lead, according to a recent international study, published Tuesday.”

http://www.kapitalis.com/economie/18811-une-etude-du-pnue-pointe-le-fleau-du-plomb-contenu-dans-les-peintures-en-vente-en-tunisie.html

Please send us any other media coverage from the nine countries you are aware of. It is best to send a web link (which allows us to read it with a translation program). If you cannot send a web link, please provide a brief summary in English.

So far, we are aware only of a small amount of other press pick-up of this report. If you are aware of other media coverage of the UNEP/IPEN report, please let us know and provide a description and/or a link to the coverage.

The coverage we have found so far is:

Capital News (Kenya)

Report warns of continued lead use in Kenyan paints

http://www.capitalfm.co.ke/news/2013/10/report-warns-of-continued-lead-use-in-kenyan-paints/

Ghana Broadcasting Corporation

Children and Pregnant Mothers face widespread exposure to toxic lead in paint

(from UNEP Press Release)

http://www.gbcghana.com/index.php?id=1.1578618

Newstrack India

Lead in paint compromises health of pregnant mothers: study

"Lead pollution is an emerging environmental threat that demands urgent attention. Science is clear that lead paint impact negatively on the health of pregnant mothers and children," UNEP's Director of the Division of Early Warning Assessment (DEWA) Peter Gilruth told journalists during the launch of the report in Nairobi.”

http://newstrackindia.com/newsdetails/2013/10/22/368--Lead-in-paint-compromises-health-of-pregnant-mothers-study-.html

Media for Freedom

UN AGENCIES URGE END TO POTENTIALLY DEADLY – BUT PREVENTABLE – LEAD PAINT USE

““This report seeks to catalyze action by raising awareness among Governments, manufacturers and consumers not just that the problem exists, but that there are cheap and safe alternatives to lead already in use that can lift this health burden in a very short time,” Mr. Nuttall said.”

http://mediaforfreedom.com/readarticle.php?AID=18018

Sacramento Bee (U.S.)

New UNEP Study Finds High Lead Levels in Paints Around the World

(A PR Newswire pickup)

http://www.sacbee.com/2013/10/22/5841005/new-unep-study-finds-high-lead.html#storylink=cpy

Spanish.China.org.cn

http://spanish.china.org.cn/international/txt/2013-10/23/content_30373147.htm

PanamaOn.com

Pintura con plomo peligro para mujeres y niños, alerta la ONU

http://panamaon.com/noticias/reportajes/1133987-pintura-con-plomo-peligro-para-mujeres-y-ninos-alerta-la-onu.html

PNUMA alerta del peligro para mujeres y niños del plomo de la pintura

http://www.mimorelia.com/noticias/126397

ElEconomista.es (Spain)

La onu alerta del peligro del plomo en la pintura para ninos y mujeres embarazadas de países pobres

http://ecodiario.eleconomista.es/sociedad/noticias/5246970/10/13/la-onu-alerta-del-peligro-del-plomo-en-la-pintura-para-ninos-y-mujeres-embarazadas-de-paises-pobres.html

SKNVibes (St. Kitts and Nevis)

Save children from lead poisoning

http://www.sknvibes.com/news/newsdetails.cfm/80584

Oman Daily Observer

Lead in paint compromises health of pregnant mothers

http://main.omanobserver.om/?p=23722

Mizo News (Mizoram India)

Lead in paint compromises health of pregnant mothers: study

http://www.mizonews.net/sciencetech/lead-paint-compromises-health-pregnant-mothers-study/

Business Standard (India)

Lead in paint compromises health of pregnant mothers: study

http://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ians/lead-in-paint-compromises-health-of-pregnant-mothers-study-113102200983_1.html

VancouverDesi (South Asian news site for Canadians)

Lead in paint compromises health of pregnant mothers: study

http://www.vancouverdesi.com/lifestyle/lead-in-paint-compromises-health-of-pregnant-mothers-study/650965/

CHILDREN IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES EXPOSED TO TOXIC LEAD POISONING

As we commemorate the Global Week of Action against Lead poisoning,

It has been revealed that lot of children are being exposed to toxic lead poisoning 

and the cases remain unreported.

NAIROBI, Kenya, October 23, 2013 (ENS) – Pregnant mothers and young

children in the developing world are still exposed to “astonishingly high

and dangerous levels of lead” through unsafe paints, finds a study by the

UN Environment Programme, released Tuesday during the International Lead

Poisoning Prevention Week of Action.

The study analyzed enamel decorative paints from nine countries on three

continents: Argentina, Azerbaijan, Chile, Cote d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana,

Kyrgyzstan, Tunisia and Uruguay.

“In this day and age, it is quite frankly breathtaking that parents

painting their child’s nursery a cheerful red, or handing their child a

colorful toy may, through no fault of their own, be exposing that child to

a pernicious and damaging toxin – lead,” said Nick Nuttall, UNEP’s

spokesperson and director of communications.

“This report seeks to catalyze action by raising awareness among

governments, manufacturers and consumers not just that the problem

exists,” he said, “but that there are cheap and safe alternatives to lead

already in use that can lift this health burden in a very short time.”

Paint pigments (Photo courtesy Occupational Knowledge International)

The research was organized by the Global Alliance to Eliminate Lead Paint,

a group co-led by UNEP and the World Health Organization.

A total of 234 cans of enamel decorative paint were purchased and tested

in a lab in the United States, with the assistance of IPEN, a network of

700 nongovernmental organizations from 116 countries working to protect

humans and the environment from toxic chemical exposure.

Most of the paints tested would not meet regulatory standards established

in most industrialized countries, such as the 90 parts per million limit

in the United States and Canada. Generally, white paints had the lowest

lead content, while red, green and yellow paints had the highest lead

levels.

The report finds that few nations have established regulatory frameworks,

but those that have exhibit lower lead paint levels.

Both Chile and Uruguay have national executive decrees that prohibit the

production, import, distribution, sale and use of decorative paints with a

lead concentration above 600 ppm, and all of the paints tested in these

two countries had low total lead concentrations.

But in each of the other seven countries studied, two or more of the

samples of enamel decorative paints had lead content greater than 10,000

ppm.

In four of these countries, at least one of the decorative paints tested

had a lead concentration at or above 99,000 ppm.

In five of the nine countries, more than half of the decorative paint

samples tested had lead content greater than 600 ppm, the regulatory limit

in many other countries.

Despite the high levels of lead, which is normally added as a pigment and

so is most present in bright colors such as yellow and red only 20 out of

the sampled paint cans offered information about lead content, the vast

majority in Uruguay.

The UNEP study and report were overseen and prepared by Dr. Scott Clark,

professor emeritus, environmental health, University of Cincinnati, who is

IPEN’s public health advisor for lead, and Jack Weinberg, IPEN’s senior

policy advisor and coordinator of IPEN’s global lead paint elimination

campaign.

Lead in paint is a problem because painted surfaces deteriorate with time

and disturbance, releasing the lead into household dust and soil outside.

Children ingest lead from dusts and soils during normal hand to mouth

behavior.

Recent World Health Organization guidelines indicate that there is no

known acceptable lead exposure level for children, and 99 percent of

children affected by high exposure to lead live in low-income and

middle-income countries.

“Each year, according to World Health Organization figures, childhood lead

exposure contributes to an estimated 600,000 new cases of intellectual

disabilities,” said Nuttall.

Damage to children’s intelligence and mental development occurs even when

there are no obvious or clinical signs of lead poisoning, decreasing their

performance in school and lifelong productivity at work.

An estimated 143,000 deaths a year result from lead poisoning, according

to WHO data; lead paint is a major contributor to this death toll.

“Lead poisoning remains the number one environmental health concern for

children globally, and lead paint is a major flashpoint for children’s

potential lead poisoning,” said WHO Director for Public Health and

Environment Dr. Maria Neira.

“The good news is that exposure to lead paint can be entirely stopped

through a range of measures to restrict the production and use of lead

paint,” she said.

Worldwide, 30 countries have phased out the use of lead paint. The Global

Alliance to Eliminate Lead Paint has set a target of 70 countries by 2015.

While the UNEP report covers nine countries, previous research by IPEN and

others shows that lead levels remain high in other countries with

economies in transition. A study in published in September 2012 by the

Kenyan NGO iLima found an average lead concentration of 14,900 ppm in 31

samples of household paint.

Over the last seven years, similar studies found high average lead

concentrations in Cameroon, Egypt, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and

Tanzania.

“In 2002, at the World Summit on Sustainable Development, governments

agreed a goal that by 2020 chemicals should be used and produced in ways

that lead to the minimization of significant adverse effects on human

health and the environment. Action to ban paint with excessive lead will

assist towards this 2020 goal,” Nuttall said.

The UNEP report recommends:

National efforts to promote the establishment of legal and regulatory

frameworks to control the manufacture, import, export, sale and use of

lead paints and products coated with lead paints.

Information campaigns to inform the public about the hazards of lead

exposure, especially in children; the presence of lead decorative paints

for sale and use on the national market; lead paint as a significant

source of childhood lead exposure; and availability of technically

superior and safer alternatives.

Paint manufacturers are encouraged to eliminate lead compounds from their

paint formulations, and participate in programs that provide third party

certification that no lead has been added to their paint. They are

encouraged to label products to help consumers identify paints free of

added lead.

“While this study shows many nations face a grave problem, it always very

clearly demonstrates that established and enforced government regulations

on lead levels in paint have a strong positive impact,” said Sara Brosche,

project manager for IPEN’s lead paint projects.

“However, paint manufactures have a responsibility to act on their own,

particularly when there is virtually no associated negative economic

impact for their businesses,” said Brosche. “There is absolutely no reason

why paints with high levels of lead should continue to be sold and poison

children.”