EcoWaste Coalition reveals toxic cadmium and phthalate in plastic tarpaulins
3 July 2025, Quezon City. Advocates for the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment revealed the detection of toxic substances of very high concern in plastic materials used in making the ubiquitous tarpaulins, which further highlighted the urgent need for strong national and global plastic regulations to protect public health and the ecosystems.
At a press conference held in Quezon City to mark the Plastic-Free July, the toxics watchdog group EcoWaste Coalition announced that the polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic tarpaulins used by senatorial candidates for the recently-concluded midterm elections were contaminated with industrial chemicals that pose serious risks to human health and the environment.
Based on laboratory tests commissioned by the group, 12 of the 12 tarpaulin samples were analyzed to contain 219 to 736 parts per million (ppm) of cadmium, way above the European Union’s limit of 100 ppm. Prior to this, the group collected 42 assorted tarpaulins and screened them for cadmium using an X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) device, which detected cadmium above 100 ppm in all the 42 samples. Used as a colorant or as stabilizer in PVC plastic, cadmium, a human carcinogen, exerts toxic effects on the renal, respiratory and skeletal systems.
Another tarpaulin sample was found to contain 90,300 ppm of di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, or DEHP, which exceeded the European Union’s limit of 1,000 ppm. A plasticizer added to make PVC plastic soft and pliable, DEHP is a known endocrine disrupting chemical (EDC) that can cause birth defects or other reproductive harm, as well as increase the risk of cancer.
“The data generated from our investigation has made the invisible toxic chemicals in the widely used tarpaulins visible,” said Aileen Lucero, National Coordinator, EcoWaste Coalition. “Decisive measures are needed to turn off the tap on toxic plastic production to prevent these harmful chemicals from contaminating our bodies, communities and the natural environment. We call on duty bearers, government regulators in particular, to support the calls for strong local and global regulations to reverse the plastic pollution crisis.”
Environmental health specialist Dr. Geminn Louis Apostol couldn’t agree more: “We cannot continue to tolerate this toxic burden on our communities. The time for action is now—we need stronger regulations, safer alternatives, and immediate steps to end toxic plastic pollution before it causes irreversible harm to current and future generations.”
Apostol, OIC Director and Program Head – Environmental Health at the Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health – Center for Research and Innovation (ACRI), added: “The alarming levels of toxic chemicals we’ve detected in everyday plastic products represent a clear and present danger to public health and our environment. These hazardous chemicals don’t stay contained in plastic—they leach into our air, water, and food, accumulating in our bodies and ecosystems. Cadmium exposure is linked to kidney damage and cancer, while phthalates like DEHP disrupt hormonal systems and harm reproductive health, particularly threatening children’s development.”
EcoWaste Coalition’s partners from the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation (SSNC) and the International Pollutants Elimination Network (IPEN) also expressed their thoughts about the group’s latest toxic discovery.
Dr. Andreas Prevodnik, SSNC Senior Policy Advisor on Chemicals, stated: “The data from the survey are concerning. In the EU, the use of cadmium in the majority of PVC products is prohibited under the REACH Regulation and the RoHS Directive. The few exemptions are strictly regulated, and tarpaulins are not one of them. Cadmium should not be in PVC products, because PVC plastics are often not separated and treated properly in many settings in low- and middle- income countries, which can lead to cadmium emissions from waste dumps and incineration. Moreover, cadmium is highly toxic.”
IPEN Technical and Policy Advisor Lee Bell, said: “EcoWaste Coalition has again exposed the lack of controls on hazardous chemicals in products and materials sold in the Philippines. Phthalates are a very strong endocrine disruptor impacting the human hormone system and the levels of DEHP found in a tested plastic tarpaulin exceeded 90,000 ppm. That’s over 9 percent pure phthalate chemical by weight in the product which is an astounding concentration and a significant hazard. These findings are a wake-up call for authorities to carefully investigate locally produced and imported plastic materials and products and ensure they comply with health based limits.”
To address the above threats to human health and the environment, Engr. Glory Rose Manatad, EcoWaste Coalition’s Policy Officer, drew attention to the following recommendations:
1. Amend the Chemical Control Order (CCO) for cadmium and its compounds to indicate an explicit prohibition on cadmium use in plastic manufacturing and in plastic products not limited to plastic tarpaulins;
2. Expand the existing prohibition on phthalates in toys and other childcare articles to include all other plastic materials and products, and add PVC plastic tarpaulins in the list of non-environmentally acceptable products and packaging (NEAPP) being developed;
3. Strengthen the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) guidelines on the use of environmentally sustainable election propaganda by categorically banning the use of plastic tarpaulins and related campaign materials containing hazardous chemicals;
4. And for the Global Plastics Treaty that it is still being negotiated by governments to:
— identify and eliminate hazardous chemical groups that can be released through the plastics life cycle from extraction and disposal and can harm human health;
—include an initial list of chemicals and chemical groups used to manufacture plastic materials and products that should be banned to protect human health such as bisphenols, phthalates, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and toxic metals; and to,
— create a reliable and independent science review committee to update the said list as science emerges about chemical hazards.
“The treaty should regulate which chemicals cannot be present in new plastic products, and plastic products should also fall under mandatory transparency and traceability requirements for their chemical composition, to facilitate informed decision-making for, for example, reuse and recycling. Recycling of legacy plastics should also be strictly controlled under the Global Plastic Treaty, as such plastics have unknown composition,” added Prevodnik.
