Final part of this article in which reference will be made to the presence that heavy metals still have in the sector and to some legislation associated with the subject.
By: M.Sc. Ph.D. Julián A. Restrepo R.*
"Heavy metals" are still present: Mps (heavy metals) become toxic elements because they are bioaccumulative, since they tend to accumulate in living beings, this because they are eliminated at a very slow speed in the body. Recent studies have shown that today we have 400 to 1,000 times more lead in our bones than we did 400 years ago. This has serious effects on the brain and mental evolution of children, especially in the formation of intelligence.
Among many other symptoms, MPs poisoning causes a disturbance of blood formation and different types of cancer, leukemias and anemias, renal insufficiencies and neurological diseases, hallucinations and irreversible neurological damage [29].
In the case of lead, it is considered potentially toxic, in addition to having no physiological function for humans. Chronic lead poisoning is called saturnism, plumbosis, or plumbemia. Lead, which is a stainless mineral, very malleable, heavy, does not please water or food.
When it enters the body, the enzymes that metabolize the sulfur amino acids transform it into lead sulfide and the synthesis of hemoglobin is blocked, altering the transport of oxygen to the blood and other organisms in the body. It causes anemia, hallucinations, bouts of insanity, and irreversible neurological damage when it reaches the brain. When the intake of lead is through water it is called water saturnism [16].
Lead is used, today, in the manufacture of various products: paints (varnishes, enamels, anticorrosives), solder for canning, leaded glass, pesticides, fertilizers, varnishes for ceramics, batteries for cars, radiator repair components, fuels (airplanes and automobiles), typographic inks, ammunition, imported cosmetics, pipes for water and oil conduction, leads for fishing, among others. This is how lead is still present in many items of our ordinary life and many consumers are unaware of it.
Colombia: Legislation associated with lead [15]
We must indicate that in the case of Colombia, there is no current legislation that regulates the lead content in paints for domestic or decorative use.
The Icontec (Colombian Institute of Technical Standards and Certification), is the body in charge of issuing the technical standards associated with the different production processes and products manufactured or marketed in the country, in the case of paints, in the standards NTC 1283 Synthetic and air drying enamels and NTC 1335 Water paints type emulsion, it states: "None of the following heavy metals, nor their compounds, may be used as ingredients of the product: Cr (VI), Cd, Lead, Hg, As".
Thus it is accepted that the ingredients may contain traces, up to 0.01% by weight, and in the final product, the lead content must be <100 ppm. Thus, the only guide for the current lead content in Colombia would be given by these standards, but these are not mandatory. The good news is that our country is currently working on the regulation of lead for products manufactured or marketed in our country, for which I would like to present a brief summary of the subject:
- Year 2004: Research to determine blood lead levels of school-age children (5-9 years) in Cartagena. More than 7% of children from lower strata had high levels of lead.
- Year 2005: Ministry of Environment, Housing and Territorial Development (MAVDT) publishes the guides of Safe Management and Environmental Management of 25 Chemical Substances, including lead monoxide (PbO).
- Year 2011: Sectoral advances in the implementation of the Comprehensive Environmental Health Policy (MAVDT), International Congress of Public Health, UdeA.
- Year 2012 National Diagnosis of Environmental Health, Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development and the Cardiovascular Foundation Colombia (FCV).
- Year 2015 Bill No. 148 of 2015: "Lead-free environment". It sets limits on lead content in industrial processes and provides general guidelines to prevent lead poisoning.
- Year 2016 IPEN Report (39 refs. of products analyzed): "Lead in solvent-based paints for domestic use in Colombia".
Importantly, we must indicate that in October 2016, the report [13] [14] was released: "Lead in solvent-based paints for domestic use in Colombia", which was carried out as part of the Global Campaign to Eliminate Lead Paint, led by IPEN (www.ipen.org) and was carried out in Colombia by the Colnodo Foundation (http://www.colnodo.apc.org) and the Sustainable Development Network (http://www.rds.org.co), with the leadership and financial support of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and the New York Community Trust (NYCT).
In this report, a total of 39 different alkyd enamels (orange, yellow, red, green, anticorrosive gray), air-drying solvent base, from the Colombian market were analyzed and the main conclusions of the report were the following:
- 59% of the paints tested contained high and dangerous lead concentrations above 10,000 parts per million (ppm) of lead, when the WHO recommendation is that it not exceed 90 ppm.
- The average lead content of the paints analyzed was 32,236 ppm
- The maximum content detected in one of the paintings was 250,000 ppm
- Only 9 refs were detected. of products (23%) with a lead content <100 ppm
- Paints without added lead may contain traces from raw materials, especially the pigments used
- The fact that there are manufacturers of paints with low lead content, indicates that Colombia, although it has the capacity to produce lead-free paints, still does not do so.
- Although Colombia has clear associated laws and environmental awareness, many of these are not enforced; there are gaps, issues not yet regulated and critical cases where particular interests coexist and a lack of monitoring and control. The importance of this issue lies in the connection with the right to health.
As indicated, it is important to highlight that since 2015 there is Bill No. 148 of 2015, which seeks to "Guarantee the right of children to develop physically and intellectually in a lead-free environment, limits are set for the lead content in products marketed in the country and others." "Lead poisoning focuses on children, who are at greater risk at low levels of exposure. The Colombian State must ensure that its infants have a concentration of Pb <5 ug/dL in blood." In the same bill, Chapter III, of the Paintings, it is indicated:
- Article 12: The manufacture and import of architectural paints, with lead content in any of its compounds exceeding 100 ppm, determined on a dry basis, is prohibited.
- Article 13: The containers of products containing lead must be presented with the instructions in Spanish and they will indicate the lead content and the indications related to the precautionary use of the product.
Latin America: The situation of lead paints
In Latin America there are 9 countries that still do not have mandatory laws on the limit of lead in decorative paints (in parentheses, average values of lead content in each country, according to IPEN analysis): Colombia (32,236 ppm), Bolivia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador (32,000 ppm), El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Paraguay (23,100 ppm) and Peru (11,600 ppm).
While 9 countries (in parentheses, average values of lead content in each country, according to IPEN analysis): Argentina (17,000 ppm), Brazil (5,644 ppm), Chile (52.6 ppm), Costa Rica, Cuba, Mexico (51,900 ppm), Panama, Uruguay (9.8 ppm) and Venezuela, do have standards, although they need to strengthen their compliance.
Final comments
Contamination of water, food and the environment in general with MPs such as lead, chromium, cadmium and mercury is still one of the main risks for many populations around the world, especially for many low-income populations.
In a more global way and aligning the impact caused by MPs with the concept of Sustainability, we could indicate that these affect the following base foci of the so-called Sustainable Development Goals:
3. Health and Wellness
6. Clean water and sanitation
11. Sustainable cities and communities
12. Responsible production and consumption
14. Underwater life
15. Life of terrestrial ecosystems
As a final comment, I must admit that when I was documenting for this writing I had a little "calmer" mind, but when analyzing in a general way the data reported by various researchers I realize the important damage that MPs have caused and especially the case of lead.
And while data and research are not easy to conduct to determine the actual impact of lead on our civilization, from my point of view, my conclusion would be that perhaps lead is the chemical element that has most influenced the course of humanity, as it has dramatically impacted leaders of important civilizations and geniuses of different eras. For the author, its impact is above some radioactive compounds (uranium, radium) and the same oil. But this would be nothing more than an additional argument to work on eradicating the use of lead in articles of ordinary life and that end users no longer have risks of contamination by this metal.
References
[13] Valero, A., PhD Thesis, "Exergy evolution of the mineral capital on earth". University of Zaragoza, 2008
[14] a) Lovelock, J., Gaia: A new look at life on Earth. Oxford University Press, 1979; (b) https://www.luisllamas.es/el-agotamiento-de-las-reservas-minerales/
[15] Restrepo, J.A. "Regulación del límite del contenido de plomo para productos en Colombia". STAR presentation (Association of Andean Coating Technicians), within the framework of Latinpin conferences, for the region; Sep, 2017: (a) http://www.latinpin.com/noticias/?se=9; (b) http://starandinapaint.com/wp/wordpress/
[16] http://www.euskonews.com/0614zbk/gaia61404es.html
[29] https://www.ecoportal.net/temas-especiales/salud/la_intoxicacion_por_metales_pesados_y_su_eliminacion_a_traves_de_remedios_naturales/
* M.Sc. Ph.D. Julián A. Restrepo R. Advisor and Technical Consultant in Coatings. President STAR (Association of Andean Technicians in Coatings). [email protected] Medellin, Colombia.
Leave your comment