Sri Lanka Standards on lead content of paints

Dr. A. R. L. Wijesekera- Chairman, Sri Lanka Standards Institution

The Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI) is aware of the current position regarding the concerns of the general public in respect of the lead content of paints available in Sri Lanka. SLSI has, accordingly, taken the following course of action:

The Sri Lanka Standards Institution's Working Group on 'Paints' is currently engaged in the revision of the Standards for both Enamel paints and Emulsion paints. The following are the Sri Lanka Standards currently available for Emulsion Paints and Enamel Paints.

(i) Emulsion paints for exterior use - SLS 557: 2009

(ii) Emulsion paints for interior use - SLS 553: 2009

(iii) Enamel paints - SLS 539: 1981 (currently under revision). It may be noted that the emulsion paints standards (i) and (ii) above have no specifications in respect of heavy metal contents. The Working Group is, therefore engaged in discussions in this regard, with a view to including a suitable specification, at least in respect of their lead contents.

The absence of such specifications is due to the fact that during the drafting stage of these Standards, a large number of samples of emulsion paints of popular brands available in the local market were tested in our laboratories with special reference to their mercury and lead contents. It was revealed that mercury was present, if it all, only in very small amounts (i.e. an average level of 1.1 mg/kg) and lead was also present in low quantities (i.e. an average of 3.0 mg/kg and a maximum of only five mg/kg). On this evidence, the Sectoral Committee on "Paints" decided that the inclusion of specifications for heavy metals would not be required.

However, the specifications given in the standard for enamel paints, (excluding usage for application on automobiles, toys and children's accessories) included specifications for heavy metals such as Lead, Cobalt Mercury Chromium etc. Additionally, specifications given in foreign Standards for paints such as the British, South African, and Malaysian Standards, were scrutinized for permissible limits for heavy metals, in addition to the results of the local samples tested by the SLSI before setting limits for the Sri Lanka Standard. Thus, the Sri Lanka Standard which was issued as SLS 539:1981 was amended in year 2003 to specify limits for heavy metals as in Table 1 based on the heavy metal contents specified in South African Bureau of Standards (SABS), Singapore Standards and results of the samples tested by SLSI.

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This table, you would note, has included the maximum permissible lead content as 600 mg/kg.

Current position in respect of enamel paints

It has now been decided to revise the current Standard to reconsider specifications for the permissible maximum heavy metal contents based on safety aspects of the environment and the health of end users. The available foreign Standards on 'Paints' were scrutinized for limits of heavy metals. Only the Indian Standard IS 133:2004 for Enamel paints and the relevant Singapore Standard SS 77:1998 were available for scrutiny. The former gives a permissible maximum limit of 5 percent for lead for defence purposes, while the latter gives a permissible maximum limit of 0.01 percent m/m. Action will be taken soon, on the recommendation of the Sectoral Committee, in respect of the permissible maximum limits for the lead contents of Enamel paints. The draft Sri Lanka Standard for Enamel paints (draft SLS 539:2010) does not cover automobile paints and paints applied on toys and children's accessories.

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You would indeed, note that

the permitted, maximum lead

content is 90 mg/kg

Once the above standards are approved by the SLSI, necessary action will be taken in consultation with all stake-holders to make the above Standard mandatory or to make the SLS Certification Mark mandatory, in collaboration with the Consumer Affairs Authority.

Further, the SLSI will also take necessary action to ensure that 'paints' will be included as a product in the compulsory Import Inspection Scheme controlled by the Import Export Control Department and operated by the Sri Lanka Standards Institution, which would mean that both imported as well as locally manufactured paints of all types, will necessarily have to conform to the respective Sri Lankan National Standards.