By Anna Valmero
MARIKINA CITY, METRO MANILA— Clothing items and fabric-based shoes contain nonylphenol ethoxylate (NPE), a hormone-disrupting chemical, a report by Greenpeace International said.
Of the 78 articles tested from 14 brands (including popular ones like Adidas, H&M and Abercrombie and Fitch), 52 were found to contain NPE, a chemical which breaks down into the hormone-disrupting nonylphenol, according to the report “Dirty Laundry 2: hung Out To Dry”.
The highest level found among the products tested was a Converse T-shirt manufactured in the Philippines, according to the report.
The same chemicals were also found in brands such as Calvin Klein, Converse, GAP, G-Star RAW, H&M, Kappa, Lacoste, Li Ning, Nike, Puma, Ralph Lauren, Uniqlo and Youngor.
Nonylphenol is used as a surfactant in textile manufacturing and is thus left in the clothes shipped worldwide.
Washing the clothes discharges these chemicals into waterways. Nonylphenol is known to accumulate in the tissues of fish and other organisms, and to magnify (be found at ever increasing levels) through the food chain. Recently, it has been detected in human tissue.
Although the level of NPEs in any given article of clothing—at 1 milligram NPEs/kilogram material—is small, the sheer volume of clothing being sold and subsequently washed means that the total quantities being released may be substantial.
The use and release of hazardous chemicals is a widespread and pervasive problem with serious, long-term consequences for people and wildlife, said Beau Baconguis, toxics campaigner of Greenpeace Southeast Asia.
“Our research shows that global clothing brands are responsible for the discharge of hazardous chemicals into waterways in China and across the world, as part of their manufacturing processes,” Baconguis said.
Discharge of most hazardous chemicals is not regulated under Philippine laws. The amended priority chemicals list or the list of hazardous chemicals that must be prioritized for action, issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in 2005 does not even include NPEs, Baconguis added.
Moreover, workers involved in the manufacture of sports apparel and the communities that host the facilities are probably being exposed to NPEs without their knowledge.
“By failing to take action to eliminate these chemicals, global brands like Adidas are expecting customers to do their dirty laundry for them. Every time clothes containing these chemicals are washed, hazardous substances are released into rivers across the world,” Baconguis said.
Brands must remove these chemicals from their products by eliminating them from the production process, he added. He noted that companies could follow the example of both Nike and Puma which have publicly committed to eliminate all discharges of hazardous chemicals from their supply chains and products by 2020.
Baconguis also urged consumers to demand from companies to produce green products and manage or lower environmental impact.
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