Gov't pushes for chemical safety in primary schools

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) - The government today urged all primary schools to make chemical safety a top priority as it warned about the potential health risks of mercury and lead to school children.

Philippine Department of Environment and Natural Resources ( DENR) Secretary Ramon Paje said chemical safety and security must be a priority of the schools.

"Administrators, supervisors, teachers and students must work together to ensure that chemicals are handled with precaution and care," Paje said during the launch of the "Lead and Mercury Safe Schools for Bright and Healthy Children" campaign by the DENR and the European Union (EU) held in a public school in Quezon City, Metro Manila on Tuesday.

He said with the help of the EU's SWITCH-Asia Programme, the Ecowaste Coalition and the International POPs Elimination Network (IPEN), the government would be able to strengthen the capacities of schools in the management of lead, mercury and other hazardous chemicals. POPs stands for persistent organic pollutants.

The Solidarity Statement, he said, will help "promote greater inter-agency and multi-stakeholder support towards lead and mercury-safe school environments for Filipino children."

Paje noted that the investments being put in the effort are an expression of the Aquino Administration's fervor to channel the  gains in the country's economy towards building generations of Filipinos "that are both physically healthy and intellectually vibrant."

Lead and mercury are toxic heavy metals being regulated by the DENR. Exposure to these chemicals has been found to cause irreversible neurological damage among children, leading to a decrease in intelligence and an increase in violent behavior.