Banned Leaded Paints Proliferate Online Despite Internet Transactions Act in Effect

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(EcoWaste Coalition urges online shopping giants to conduct “house cleaning” to rid their platforms of prohibited goods)

28 July 2025, Quezon City. Despite the full enforcement last June 20 of Republic Act No. 11967, or the Internet Transactions Act, online shopping giants have yet to conduct "house cleaning" to ensure that prohibited products such as imported lead-containing paints are no longer advertised, promoted and traded using their platforms, the EcoWaste Coalition said.

The environmental watchdog group expressed utter dismay over the unrelenting sale in major e-commerce sites of imported paints with high levels of lead, a neurotoxic and endocrine disruptor banned in the production of paint, in gross violation of the law.

The importation, distribution and sale of such leaded paints, spray paints for consumer use in particular, makes a mockery of the DENR-issued Chemical Control Order (CCO) banning lead paints implemented by the local paint industry, the group pointed out.

The ban covers all types of paints and similar surface coatings, including those manufactured abroad and sold in the domestic market, with lead content in excess of 90 parts per million (ppm).

 

To demonstrate the problem, the group purchased assorted spray paints from online sellers at Lazada and Shopee for P40 to P105 each and had them screened for lead with the aid of an X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analyzer. The products, mostly made in China and Thailand, were ordered between July 15 to 24.

Of the 23 paints purchased, 14 screened positive for lead content ranging from 850 to 81,700 ppm in defiance to the 90 ppm maximum limit. Among those analyzed to contain lead were three anti-corrosive or anti-rust primers. None of these leaded paints were manufactured or distributed by member companies of the Philippine Paint & Coatings Association, Inc., an advocate for the successful industry-wide transition to non-lead paint manufacturing.

As per XRF screening, the following paint brands have one or more colors containing violative levels of lead:

Boston Spray Paint: anti-rust substrate gray (850 ppm)

Collrfia Spray Paint: orange red (1,602 ppm)

Colorz Chisai Spray Paint: metal gray (1,967 ppm), orange red (11,410 ppm), anti-rust brown (13,240 ppm), and canary yellow (31,200 ppm)

Colorz Spray Paint: flash red (983 ppm), jade green (19,340 ppm), and medium yellow (37,800 ppm)

King Sfon Spray Paint: leaf green (38,210 ppm)

Koby Spray Paint: forest green (81,700 ppm)

Nikko Spray Paint: anti-rust primer red (4,541 ppm)

Tiger Spray Paint: orange (16,130 ppm)

Yatibay Spray Paint: blackish green (11,850 ppm)

The EcoWaste Coalition clarified that the above paint brands have other colors with lead content as previously verified through laboratory tests contracted by the group, specifically Boston Spray Paint (orange red); Collrfia Spray Paint (light green, art yellow): Colorz Chisai Spray Paint (canary yellow, orange yellow), Colorz Spray Paint (fresh green, lemon yellow); King Sfon Spray Paint (cream, gold, orange, orange red, silver red, lemon yellow, orange yellow, yellow); Koby Spray Paint (fresh green, deep red, Mars red, orange red, Suzuki red, deep yellow, medium yellow), Nikko Spray Paint (wool beige, army green, dark green, grass green, leaf green, green, orange red, light yellow, medium yellow, yellow); Tiger Spray Paint (bright red, grass green, lemon yellow); and Yatibay Spray Paint (grass green, refrigerator green, deep yellow, Isuzu desert yellow, lemon yellow).

To stop the illegal trade, which poses a public health threat, the EcoWaste Coalition reiterated the urgent need to take down online product listings for lead-containing paints, block and penalize non-compliant sellers, and hold e-commerce sites liable if they fail to act to stop the illegal trade and protect the consumer interest in line with RA 11967.

The group also repeated its call on the government to nominate lead chromates for listing in the Rotterdam Convention to control the global trade of this common lead-based pigments and paints containing them. To date, three countries (Cameroon, Morocco and Switzerland) have nominated lead chromates for listing under the treaty’s Prior Informed Consent (PIC) procedure.

Reform and resolve in action: DepEd marks one year of reforms under Secretary Angara

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MAKATI CITY, 28 July 2025 — Focused on real reforms and strong resolve a year after Secretary Sonny Angara took the helm, the Department of Education (DepEd) is showing progress in its efforts to carry out President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s education agenda and instruction in his State of the Nation Address (SONA).


"Mula sa simula, malinaw ang layunin natin na makinig, ayusin ang kailangang ayusin, at itayo ang mga kulang. Bunga ito ng pakikinig sa mga guro, magulang, at mag-aaral sa mismong mga paaralan,” Sec. Angara said.


Strengthening Early Education
One of the biggest milestones is the expansion of the School-Based Feeding Program, which was recently launched. Starting this school year, all public Kindergarten learners will be included in the feeding program.


To support child nutrition, DepEd will also be piloting Project SIGLA to automate the monitoring of learners’ health and nutrition. At the same time, construction has begun on 328 new Child Development Centers in poorest municipalities across the country.


Supporting Teachers
DepEd has also made big changes in supporting teachers. Out of more than 21,000 new teaching positions funded in 2024, 97 percent have already been filled. The same goes for administrative staff, with 99 percent of 5,000 new positions already taken.


New ranks (Teacher IV to VII) were added to improve teacher career paths while more than 2,100 school heads are set to be reclassified into School Principal positions, moving closer to the goal of one principal for every school.


DepEd also doubled the teaching supplies allowance to ₱10,000 and issued the first-ever medical allowance for teachers. Teachers in private schools will now receive a ₱24,000 salary subsidy, a ₱6,000 increase. Paperwork for public school teachers has also been cut by more than half, making daily tasks simpler and faster.


Responding to Classroom and Connectivity Gaps
The Department is also addressing classroom shortages, working with the private sector to build 105,000 classrooms to reduce the national backlog. By August, new modular classrooms will be designed for disaster-hit areas.


DepEd is also collaborating with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), Department of Energy (DOE), and National Electrification Administration (NEA) to provide better connectivity and electricity supply to last mile schools. PSIP Connect, a PPP project, is also lined up to bring digital devices, solar power, and internet to remote schools.


Creating a Responsive Curriculum and Learning Recovery Strategy
The updated K to 10 curriculum now puts more focus on reading, writing, and basic math. The strengthened Senior High School curriculum, now being piloted to 900 schools nationwide, has a stronger connection to essential academic and tech-voc skills.


Major gains in foundational literacy were also observed with the number of low emerging readers dropping through the Literacy Remediation Program (LRP) and Bawat Bata Bumabasa Program (BBMP) implemented during the summer break.


Meanwhile, the Free TESDA Assessment Program now covers more learners, including those in ALS and technical-vocational programs. SHS graduates are now recognized by the Civil Service Commission as qualified for entry-level government jobs.


Improving Internal Systems
From 451 days, textbook process takes only 60 days for procurement, and 110 days for printing and delivery, under Angara’s watch. A digital registry for suppliers is also in place to improve transparency.


For partners, DepEd’s Adopt-A-School Program now has a dedicated website and a School Finder to connect donors directly with schools in need. The Department will also launch Project Bukas in August to give the public access to key DepEd data.


To support innovation, the Education Center for AI Research, or ECAIR, has been established. It will lead DepEd’s work in using digital and AI tools for learning. DepEd is also building digital tools such as Project LIGTAS for mapping school risks, and Project TALINO to find schools with urgent needs.


Secretary Angara said that while much has been done, the work is far from over: “Marami pa tayong kailangang ayusin, marami pa tayong kailangang abutin. Pero habang pinagkakatiwalaan tayo ng taumbayan, hindi tayo titigil sa paglilingkod, para sa bawat guro, bawat magulang, at bawat batang nangangarap.”


DepEd enters its second year under Angara with clearer direction: to make the education system more inclusive, more responsive, and ready for the future under the Bagong Pilipinas.

Holes of Hope: Philippine Biologists Uncover Life-Saving Secrets Inside Subic’s Trees

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Subic Watershed Forest Reserve, Zambales — In the silent depths of Luzon's forests, a race for survival unfolds—not on the ground, but high up in the canopy, where holes in trees decide the fate of birds.

Amidst the towering kupang and white lauan trees of the Subic Watershed Forest Reserve, Filipino biologists have unlocked a powerful truth: the forest's future may lie within its hollow trunks.

For many birds, especially in tropical regions like the Philippines, tree cavities—those unassuming dark spaces in living or dead trees—are not just shelter; they are sanctuaries of life. Here, chicks are born, nurtured, and protected from predators and storms. But for many species, especially non-excavator birds, these cavities are not easy to come by. They rely entirely on chance—or on other animals—to provide them.

A groundbreaking study led by Vince Angelo Gicaraya of the University of the Philippines Diliman’s Institute of Environmental Science and Meteorology (IESM) and Institute of Biology (IB), alongside Dr. Carmela Española of IB and the Natural Sciences Research Institute (NSRI), has now brought to light a hidden world of ecological interactions that could forever change how we approach conservation in the country.

A Climb into the Canopy—and Discovery

Armed with ropes, binoculars, and an unshakable resolve, the team—joined by experts from the Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), local environmentalists from Pampanga, and dedicated volunteers—surveyed the lush trails and off-trail thickets of Subic from February to June 2022.

They cataloged 10 species of cavity-nesting birds across the forest, meticulously measuring the cavities these birds called home—depth, entrance area, and volume—all vital clues into the secrets of avian real estate.

The researchers found something astonishing: 63% of non-excavator bird nests were carved out by woodpeckers, proving that these chisel-beaked birds serve as keystone species in this ecosystem. In essence, when woodpeckers vanish, an entire community of dependent birdlife is at risk of collapsing.

"This is only the second study in Asia—and the first in the Philippines—to investigate nest web interactions on a community level," the research team noted. “It shows how intricately species are connected in the Philippine forest ecosystem through something as seemingly simple as a hole in a tree.”

Woodpeckers: Unsung Architects of Biodiversity

While in other parts of the world—like temperate Europe or subtropical South America—woodpeckers are not considered linchpins of the forest, the Subic study aligns more closely with findings from India and Canada: in tropical forests, woodpeckers are essential.

Their presence supports not just their own species, but those who follow—like the Critically Endangered Blue-naped Parrot (Tanygnathus lucionensis) and the Vulnerable Luzon Hornbill (Penelopides manillae), both of which face the compounded threats of habitat loss and a lack of suitable nesting sites.

By modeling how different birds select cavities based on physical characteristics, the team has laid the foundation for practical conservation solutions—such as designing species-specific nest boxes to mimic preferred cavity conditions.

Science at the Service of Conservation

Published in the prestigious Annales Zoologici Fennici, the research paper titled “Cavity characteristics explain the differences in realized nest niches among tree cavity-nesting birds in a lowland tropical forest in Luzon Island, Philippines” brings urgency to the call for action.

With funding support from NSRI and DENR’s Foreign-Assisted and Special Projects Service (FASPS), the collaborative effort between research institutions and the government offers a promising example of how science can directly inform and empower conservation work.

But the work is far from over.

"This study underscores the urgent need to prioritize both the protection of primary excavators like woodpeckers and the preservation of native trees that support cavity formation," the team emphasized.

From Forest Floor to Forest Future

In a country where deforestation, habitat degradation, and climate change continually reshape the natural world, this study serves as a rare ray of hope. It reminds us that even the most overlooked details—like a hollow in a tree—can harbor profound significance for the future of biodiversity.

And as the Philippines continues to grapple with balancing development and environmental protection, perhaps the forest itself has something to say: listen to the trees, and protect the birds that make them home. For within these tree holes, the heartbeat of the wild continues to echo—and with it, the promise of life for generations to come.