Group finds lead in yellow plastic sando bags

Several yellow sando-type plastic bags sold in Manila were found to contain lead and other restricted chemicals, an ecological group said.

EcoWaste Coalition said it discovered this after buying and analyzing 4,300 plastic bags to determine compliance with toxics in packaging control.

"Our findings confirm that plastic bags represent a real menace to human and ecological health. The threat comes not only from the huge amount of discarded plastic bags blocking waterways, aggravating floods, and choking dumpsites, but also from their toxic chemical ingredients that get dispersed into the environment, contaminating the food chain and, ultimately, our bodies,” said EcoWaste's Sonia Mendoza.

She urged Mayor Joseph Estrada to take "firm action to curb the indiscriminate use and disposal of plastic bags," to diminish such a threat to humans and the ecosystem.

The group noted Manila is preparing to implement City Ordinance 8282, which will prohibit the use of plastic bags for dry goods, and will regulate their use for wet goods.

Last Aug. 29 to 31, the group bought and tested plastic sando bags from wholesalers and retailers in Divisoria, Paco, Quiapo, and Sampaloc.

"While plastic sando bags are available in other colors, the group limited their sampling to yellow-colored ones as similar studies abroad had indicated lead in such bags due to the use of lead chromate to color plastics," it said.

Toxic metals

The test showed 2,300 of the 4,300 yellow sando bag samples exceeded the allowable level of 100 parts per million (ppm) by weight for toxic metals, including lead.

"Lead, a potent neurological, reproductive, and developmental toxin, and an endocrine disrupting chemical, was detected in levels ranging from 106 to 5,680 ppm, with average lead content at 1,313 ppm," EcoWaste said.

It said "Mercury" yellow sando bags had 69 ppm of mercury, 1,170 ppm of chromium and 5,680 ppm of lead, the highest among the samples.

The 13 brands of yellow plastic sando bags found to contain lead include: Capricorn, Centrum, Cheetah, Mercury, Oriental Star, Pinoy Brothers, Sunshine, Star, Supreme, Swimmer, Unique, White Dove, and Winner.

Low or non-detectable levels of led were found in Astig, Batang Pinoy, JR, Super Mega, Mr. Divisoria, Royal Jade, Saturn, Star Bag, Super Sonik, and Walrus plastic bags.

But the group said such bags cannot be considered eco-friendly, as single-use disposable bags, plastic or otherwise, "use and deplete natural resources and energy and spawn pollution from production to disposal, while reinforcing wasteful, throw-away behavior."

The group cited surveys by EcoWaste, Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives, Greenpeace, Mother Earth Foundation in 2006 and 2010 showing plastic bags constituting 51.4 and 27.7 percent, respectively, of the flotsam in Manila Bay.

"According to studies, consumers across the globe use 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags per year, which translate to about a million bags every minute or 150 bags a year for every person on earth," the group said. — VC, GMA News