The Environment Protection Agency and the Lead Exposure Elimination Project (LEEP) explore avenues to curtail lead-paint exposure in Sierra Leone.
Group photo of staff at the in-house training
It should be noted that in 2022, the agency, in collaboration with the Lead Exposure Elimination Project (LEEP), undertook a paint testing study to evaluate the lead concentration of paints available for purchase in Sierra Leone.
The results showed that 9 out of 19 (47%) samples of solvent-based paint for domestic use obtained in Freetown contained dangerously high levels of lead (more than 90 ppm lead), the maximum threshold suggested by the United Nations Environment Programme Model Law.
Lead-based paints typically had lead concentrations many times higher than the legal limit: 42% contained more than 600 ppm. The maximum lead content detected was 32,000 ppm which is over 350 times the recommended limit.
Furthermore, as lead paint ages, it begins to degrade, fragmenting into flakes and dust that pollute the environment and can be swallowed, particularly by small children.
This poses an environmental and public health threat that requires urgent action.
Given this, the agency, in collaboration with the Lead Exposure Elimination Project (LEEP), organised a three-day seminar and field visit with EPA staff to review an Arrangement of Regulations—a set of draft regulations designed to regulate the industrial activities of Sierra Leone’s paint manufacturers, importers, and exporters.
The Legal Affairs Compliance and Enforcement Directorate introduced the detailed regulations that will be enacted to prevent the manufacture, sale, and import of lead-based paints.
Dr Dhital Bal, Program Manager of the Lead Exposure Elimination Project, and Mohamed Osman Bah, Manager of the Sierra Leone Standards Bureau, explained during working sessions that when lead is absorbed into the body, it can cause damage to the brain and other vital organs such as the kidneys, nerves, and blood.
It can also result in behavioural issues, learning impairments, seizures, and, in severe circumstances, death. It has a damaging effect on practically all body systems and is especially dangerous to young children and pregnant women. Globally, lead paint is a major source of lead poisoning
Field visits to Lion Paint Company in Cline Town, Vintex Paint Company in Goderich, Rainbow Paint, Sierra Paint, and the Sierra Leone Standards Bureau provided insight into their operations and compliance rates with acceptable environmental health and safety standards, highlighting how we can investigate options to eliminate lead from paint products by international standards.
Staff of the EHS Directorate testing lead concentrations in paints at the field visit.
The seminar concluded with the presentation of the draft regulations, which will be submitted to the ministry for further review, discussion, and approval before being presented to the House of Parliament as a step to demonstrate Sierra Leone’s commitment to protecting public health in conjunction with global efforts to eliminate lead paint hazards.