Batman, Robin & the Riddler Protests PVC Toys

["greenbase" <greenbas@gb.greenpeace.org>]

DYNAMIC DUO AND THE RIDDLER SCALE CONVENTION CENTER WALLS TO
BRING MESSAGE TO TOY COMPANIES: PROTECT OUR CHILDREN FROM TOXIC
VINYL TOYS!

NEW YORK CITY, February 13, 1998 - On the opening day of the
American International Toy Fair toy exhibition, Greenpeace
activists disguised as Batman, Robin, and their new ally the
Riddler scaled the interior walls of Gotham City's Jacob Javits
Convention Center.  The Dynamic Duo and their former nemesis
unfurled a 10-foot by 30-foot banner reading, "PLAY SAFE, DON'T
BUY VINYL TOYS," and said they were teaming up to protect
America's children from the toxic chemicals that have been shown
to leach from vinyl (PVC) toys when kids chew or handle them.

"Creeping chemicals, Batman!" Robin exclaimed from 50 feet off
the ground.  "Why would toy makers continue to promote vinyl
toys when health experts and governments agree they pose an
unnecessary hazard to children?"

Last month the US Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a
statement urging manufacturers to "eliminate" the use of lead
additives in products accessible to children, after Greenpeace
released data showing high levels of lead and cadmium in vinyl
toys.  In tests commissioned by Greenpeace and performed by
independent laboratories in the US and Europe in 1997, these and
other hazardous additives were shown to leach from vinyl
products. Products include those manufactured by Mattel and
Hasbro, and marketed by Disney and Toys R Us.

In 1996 Greenpeace wrote to major toy companies and retailers to
alert them of the dangers of vinyl toys, and later met with the
International Council of Toy Industries (ICTI) twice to discuss
eliminating PVC from product lines.  Not only have the toy
companies taken no action, but ICTI even claimed that no vinyl
toys contained lead.  

Nevertheless, some governments have taken action in light of
revelations about PVC hazards: Denmark and Austria will ban
hazardous additives in soft PVC, while Germany, Italy, Belgium,
the Philippines and the Netherlands have urged manufacturers,
retailers, importers and licensors to stop selling soft vinyl
toys for children under three.  The well-known toy maker LEGO
has responded to the PVC problem by pledging to phase out the
use of PVC in all of their toys.

In children, lead is known to impair intelligence and can
permanently damage the nervous system.  Cadmium is considered
five to 10 times more toxic than lead.  Other hazardous
additives in vinyl have been linked to tumors, liver and kidney
damage and reproductive abnormalities in animals.

Given the hazards associated with vinyl, the Riddler joined the
Dynamic Duo to protest the toy makers' continued marketing of
vinyl in their 1998 product lines.

"In all my evil deeds, I've never done anything so
unconscionable. Manufacturers must take immediate responsibility
to eliminate PVC toys to protect children's health," said the
Riddler.  "It's so important, I joined my arch rivals to protect
babies and kids from the hazards of vinyl."

The entire life cycle of PVC plastic is a polluting process. 
Its production involves highly toxic additives and generates
hazardous chlorinated emissions and wastes.  When burned in
accidental fires or incinerators, PVC is a significant source of
dioxin and secondary hazardous wastes.

ends

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