Cadmium Crisis Latest News
As artists have been sharing their viewpoints the committee now have a better understanding of how artists use these important pigments. Remember that the cadmium ban is not inevitable it is only a proposal under consultation. They are seeking information to make a decision about restriction of the pigments.
You can influence whether or not the restriction is adopted by submitting your opinion. Visit the ECHA (European Chemical Agency) website to give your opinions on the use, unique characteristics and handling of these special paints. The deadline is September 19th, 2014.
Read other articles on this blog about the Proposed Cadmium Restriction.
Clarifying a point
There has been some confusion that the ban is to protect artists from poisoning – this is not the case. The ban is to prevent cadmium from getting into the sewage sludge that is used to fertilise crops, after artists wash it down the drain.
Our argument is that artists paints are not a significant source of the cadmium in the sewage, there are many other far greater sources, and removing cadmium from artists paints will do very little to improve the situation.
Proponents of the restriction seem to think that artists won’t mind and that related pigments will do just as well. This is where we need to make our voices heard.
The cadmium used in artists paints is a different form, chemically bound with sulfur so it is stable. It almost seems like it should be called something different to keep people from getting it confused with cadmium metal.
Here is information from the Gamblin Oil Colours Health and Safety page – Gamblin have been champions of creating a safe environment for years.
“Cadmium pigments:
In the hundred years since their first manufacture, cadmium pigments now have a very low level of bio-available cadmium metal in their chemical composition. Unfortunately, many painters still consider Cadmium artists’ colors highly toxic. If Cadmium pigments were made from cadmium metal they would indeed be highly toxic. Cadmium pigments are actually made from cadmium compounded with sulfur for the Cadmium yellows (sulfur and zinc for Cadmium Lemon and Cadmium Yellow Light). To make Cadmium reds and Cadmium oranges, cadmium is compounded with sulfur and selenium.
American manufacturers of cadmium pigments have developed production systems that yield cadmium pigments that are relatively insoluble in the human digestive system. They have been so successful that Gamblin Cadmium oil colors DO NOT REQUIRE an ASTM healthwarning label for ingestion. Over 25 years ago when I first started making oil colors, cadmium pigments were much more soluble in the human system than they are now. Cadmium pigments contained about 1000 parts per million (PPM) bio available cadmium. Now cadmium pigments that I choose to make Gamblin Artists Colors contain only about 5 PPM cadmium that can be absorbed through ingestion.”
I think it will be a great shame to not have the Cadmium paints any longer, they have their place in the palette just as other coloyrs do, we paint with them we don’t eat them so they are no more dangerous that using pastels or other mediums
Hi,
I find this whole issue rather strange. I am sure, other artists like myself, don’t ever wash their pigments down the sink when it is a private home which doesn’t wish to be dirtied. The paints are used on grease-proof type papers and wrapped up before disposal in the recycle paper bin.
The best is to take the “remains” to a chemical deposit centre with a note written of what it contains. If it is just taken to a landfill or burned, the heavy metals are just taking another route into the environment. Also so if turned in to recycled paper.
I do not know how common and how easy they are to “get to” in other Countries – here, at least in the town I live in, they have made deposition and recycling a fairly easy thing to do. (Although i look around my shoulders a few times before leaving my “stuff” there – since there sometimes is “illegal white” in it – and I do write that it is this heavy-metal oxide in the residues on my note so they know how to handle it safely.)
Like Jody I either use greaseproof paper or disposable palette liners (or for oil I use aluminium foil) which I ball up and throw out. Since I only generate small amounts at a time I do put it in with the household rubbish. My local recycling centre does have disposal for paints, so I will bear this is mind and take it there in future – though I think they expect paint in cans.
I am concerned that if cadmium pigments are allowed for artists they will become exorbitantly expensive as they will no longer be manufactured for industrial use.
Cadmium paint is illegal to use in industry since a long time back. It is only artists that use it.
I use ordinary household tissue to whip of brushes and other tools. Cotton rag, if I need to remove oil paint from the painting. I collect it in a metal bin (linseed oil can self-ignite when drying, trying to compress it much as possible so I do not need to go to many times to the deposit station.
To clean oil paint brushes, I first have a jar with linseed oil (cheap low grade) and use this with household paper to get the most paint out of the brushes. Then a large jag with turpentine (I paint with dammar varnish – otherwise you can skip this), a large jar with water based oil paint cleaning liquid, a large jar with pine soap+water (pine soap does not “dry out” the brushes as paint cleaners often do). And finally a large jag of water.
I have put/made some kind of filter at the bottom of the jars (from those with metal net that you use to pour pasta through to get rid of the water).
I clean a bit “back and fourth” between those jars, wiping of on paper in between.
Most paint residue falls to the bottom in the jars, and when there is to much on the bottom – I empties them (but reuses turpentine, cleaning liquids, etc. and water easily evaporates) by scooping it up and put it in a small plastic bin or something.
When there is enough that I must deposit it, I put all in a plastic bag an go to the recycling centre. I have marked on a note that it is residue from artist paints and may contain cadmium, cobalt, chrome, zinc, lead, etc. Here they have a metal container (since much is flammable) where I just put it on a shelf.
For watercolours, I just have large jars filled with water. If the water in them gets to dirty I just leave it to settle (and water will evaporate) and scope up remains. If you have several buckets for cleaning brushes when you have used different colours: one for yellow, one for magenta, one for green, etc. – you can sometimes use this to paint with. Then a big bucket for final cleaning, so I do not have to clean in running water in the zinc.
Genuine cadmium paints at . £10 for a 60ml tube are just too expensive to throw away or wash down a sink.
I wager there is no evidence to support this crazy proposed ban.
Bob Hill
No, it’s only a scapegoatproject for the Swedish government to put the blame of cadmium in nature on artists, while they at the same time lower taxes on artificial fertilizers that (in total) releases so, much, much, much more cadmium into nature and into the crop. Most in the information that the EU-bureocrats have been given by the Swedish Government to base their decision upon, is false. It assumes most paint goes into the sewage and not on the paintings, it assumes that all cadmium found in ferilizers comes from sewage-made fertilisers (and not from the artificial ones), it assumes that all cadmium found on the bottom of the water outside the Parliment and Government buildings comes from the Royal College nexdoor, it assumes that all cadmium paint sold in our capital are used in our capital (althoug much is sold on mailorder), it assumes that artist’s cadmiums are very poisounus without backing up the statement, etc. Unfortunately some stupid professor at some Swedish art college has stated in the report that there is no difference between cadmium paint and other reds and yellows: “there is a small difference in hue, but this can be solved by using complements”, “other paints are a bit more transparent, but you only paint thicker or paint over it a few times”, “it doesn’t matter to artists today if the [other] paints fade “, etc.
Election for parliment here on Sunday. Probbably and hopefully we have a new government coming up in a few weeks. Our “Environmental Party” will be in this, but they told me they want to ban these fertilisers instead and are open for keeping cadmium paint leagal to use by responsible artists.
Unfortunately this will be to late.
10£ for a 60ml tube of genuine cadmium? Maybe for acrylics.
A *37ml* tube of W&N Artists’ oil costs £18, £26 if you buy Harding.
Why don’t these silly and immature people, in the bureaucracy get a decent job, and stop trying to organize and control other people. I suggest a job mending roads is far more productive than destroying they practices and tradition of artists who are the least people who need to be controlled. This sounds like another offshoot of the very evil Agenda 21. Vote these bureaucrats out of office, disenfranchise them . Leave the artists alone
I totally agree, my husband has been painting in oil for over 40 years, already, his favourite ‘flake white’ has been banned because of the lead content, and now, it looks as though he will not be able to get cadmium anymore – He always disposes of his paints responsibly, and besides, the very very small amount that he does dispose of (oil paints are expensive, he saves every drop he can) I am sure, will not make any difference. Original paintings are already threatened by the onset of digital technology. Are these bureaucrats trying to suppress creativity?
The intensity and brilliance of cadmium colours can’t be matched, we should never lose them.
Cadmium was banned in artists’ enamels in about 2,000. There is no substitute. Once fired, it was held in glass.
A few years before, cheap Polish, porous, stove enameled kitchenware caused a scare. Although the cadmium yellows and oranges were used for the external surfaces and had no contact with cooking food, the metal oxides could leach out.
What was a reasonable restriction based upon the potential effects upon the health of a great number of people being put, unknowingly, at risk, now seems to have got out of hand.
If cadmium wash-off residue can get into the environment and harm it then of course we should stop using it. Environmental responsibility is 100% more important than the colour we paint with! It would be totally selfish and arrogant of artists to think otherwise. It is the health of water courses and the animals that live in them and feed from that counts, and plants that grow there too that matters most.
The ban of cadmium pigments for professional artist’s paint is an over reaction, to say the least. It is just as ridiculous as would be the banning of poisonous substances used by chemists.
I hope you are right!
According to Swedish news (although there hasn’t been very much about this issue), and our Minister of Enivironment – the politician that has taken the initiative to propose this ban – there have been a few times earlier when such a legislation has been proposed to EU. But stated that this time, there is a concensus among all member nations to ban the colours, and that lobbying from artist’s paint manufacturers have been ignored this time — and it’s only a matter of procedure before the ban can be in place.
One of the Governments Institutions has also actually propagated for the ban with a rhetorical “pamphlet”, trying to ridicule artists using these colours and stating that this artist-paint-cadmium is a very posionous form of cadmium and a major souce of cadmium entering our environment. This is a very unusual thing – normally they just make political decisions and informs about them. There even was some kind of “raid” at one of the Art Schools in Stockholm. Not a Police raid or an inspection to check on how they handled chemicals (paint, etc.). More of a a political “thing” by journalists from the Swedish Television – who I think otherwise always strives hard to report with a neutral approach – them self being very eager to ban the colours. Very unusual, strange, and kind of scary..
It was also stated that Sweden also has the ability to enforce this ban on all EU-members, according to some law that specifies that the nation with toughest environmental rules in some cases can have such legislation power.
If this actually is true, I am not one who has political knowledge enough to tell. I hope not.
I have asked around regarding cadmium in fertilisers, and this can not (only) be cadmium that has its oringin from artist’s paint. Athough I do not have the exact numbers, I am told that it is so, so, so, much larger quantities of cadmium in total in the fertlisers used in the agricultural industry in our country, compared to all the cadmium paint sold and used here.
[Buy “Ecological”-marked food if you do not want to eat vegetables — or meat/milk from animals that has ben fed with vegetables — containing this cadmium. There do exist fertilisers that do not contain cadmium — they are just a bit more expensive. And one of the reason that they are more expensive here in Sweden, is because the same Minister has removed taxes from the ones containing cadmium…]
Since the initiative for the legislation is from the Swedish Government, it is always possible for you to write to our Government’s Ministery of Environment (and/or Ministry of Culture) and to the politicians in our Parliament’s Committee of Environment (and/or the one of Culture) to ask and/or complain (be polite).
government.se and riksdagen.se/en/
These sites are in English, and all our politicians are fluently in English. The Ministries often answers mails. But politicians in the Parliament very seldom do – possible even more less right now when the election for our Parliament is comming up. But they may be curious if someone non-Swedish writes.
You can also find links there to the different parties websites – they normally answers mails: Socialdemokraterna (Labour) – probably our next government – being the largest. Then Moderaterna (approx. Tories) – the major party in our government – the second. And Miljöpartiet (Environmentalists) – who want to ban fertilisers containing cadmium, but told me that they are open for an exeption on cadmium colours for artist use – the third. The Minister who want this ban, is from Centern (the Center) – actually a small Party that are prognosed to have some trouble to get places in the parliament in the upcoming election.
A ban on cadmium in artist paint would be taking things a step too far. It would be as outragious as banning harmful materials that are used ny chemists. Artists can adabt correct methods of disposing with harnful ingredients in paint.
Personnally I wash my brushes on a flat dish dipping my brush in water prior to this -stomping the brush then mop up any pigment into cheap tissue paper. This I think reduces the amount if any pigment being washed down the sink, particurly cadmiums. I do this when using water based mediums – acrylics especially. I the end up with just a slightly cloudy water when I pour my brush cleaning jar down the sink. I beleive that if every one did this it would make the EU think about it’s proposal again. Although this would not obviously stop waste pigment finding it’s way into land fill sites, it would definitely reduce the amount being thrown down the sink and getting into the water works. Then most waste is buried in countries which are far more harmful than cadmium – which have been used since the 1800’s. Nuclear debris and other highly intoxic chemicals are a much bigger threat to us. But we can definitly reduce how much we throw down the sink and I’m sure that if this can be done then perhaps the chance of a ban can be minimised.
Douglas Young
I wrote a comment on another thread about cadmium paint in this site. Just to repeat some:
• Most cadmium comes from artificial phosphor fertilisers, not from sewage sludge fertilisers. Phosphorus fertilisers can also increase uptake of cadmium in crops.
Our Swedish Minister of Environment and Agriculture removed taxes from these phosphors fertilisers, so we in Sweden can have a somewhat better advantage in producing a bit cheaper food to “compete” on the European market – since these artificial fertilisers increase crop. This Minister is the same politician that has taken the initiative to ban cadmium artist paint.
• There are “cleaner” fertilisers than the ones that comes from sewage or the artificial phosphor fertilisers. These are used in environmental-friendly agriculture.
• There are possibilities to clean sewage from heavy metals with better techniques at sewage cleaning plants.
• Tobacco contains very much cadmium, and smokers have cadmium levels up to five times as much as non-smokers.
No politicians ever talks about banning smoking, even if it is a very great threat to the individual smoker, persons that is subject to “passive smoking”, the environment, and is responsible for high social economical costs.
……
[So:
Politicicians should deal with the big issues before bothering about things like theese, since it is a very stable (against acids, oxygene, etc.) compound of cadmium we are talking about – and won’ react easily with organic molecules, unlike other ones.
But artist should also be very responsible, and NEVER clean brushes and wash remains down the sink. Tissues, paint remains, etc. should ALWAYS be collected and left at a chemical deposit centre. There are so much other stuff that arn’t good for the environment. As an example zinc is not the best for the aquatic environmmet, and has been restricted regarding use in sun protectiors, boat paint for boats used in fresh water, dandruff articles, and other things. (Remember that titanium white also always contains zinc white – at least in oil paint. Also, smaller “nano” titanium white particles has recently been questioned regarding healt issues.) We do not want more plastics in the oceans, so acrylic binder is not the best. Earth-pigment may contain manganese. And so on…
Those of you that want to paint totaly environmentally friendly: do not paint at all]
As I have written on another of the bloggs here, our Swedish Minister of Environment – the person who has taken the initiative to enforce a ban of the cadmiums – has unfortunately been advised by Swedish Teachers/Professors in Painting that it does not really matter if pigments are permanent, and that there is only a small differense between the cadmiums and the other reds and yellows: A difference in hue – but that this could be solved by mixing with complimentaries.. ?-!
…
I now read that the “transparency issue” was “solved” by one of these Professors in their advice to the Minister: “one just paint thicker or paint over it several times”. X-(
…
So in the politicians world, it does not matter for the artists if the cadmiums are banned.
They do not paint much at our Swedish art colleges. The Professor of Painting at the Royal College of Art did – a few years ago – even declare in a TV debate, that more “traditional” realistc figurative painting is “decadent” and no College teaching this should be allowed in our country.
I really hope that SERIUS and knowledgable Professors and Teachers of Painting with some authority, at more SERIUS Art Colleges/Academies/Atelier Schools in other European Contries will put forward their knowledge to the legislation committee – and to the Ministers of Culture and/or Education in their native countries.
A ban would be devastating…We artists are generally a responsible lot, we don’t pollute and we dispose of any hazardous material with great care. Where even small amounts of toxic material exist, we would be most careful.
The actual quantities of toxic cadmium in modern paint is surely very minute?
Not only that surely we could have some satisfactory solution to disposal of waste paint perhaps recycling?
Sorry… Just have to comment again.
I found this on a site:
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“Cadmiums are considered mildly to moderately toxic (especially the reds, which also contain selenium). Theoretically they might be eaten or inhaled (as a pigment powder, sprayed paint, pastel residue, or fumes from heated pigment), but there was not a single documented case of cadmium poisoning from artists’ paints uncovered in a 1954 industry report, and I have not found any cases reported since then. Formulations that include more than 15% barium sulfate as an extender (denoted by the color index names PY35:1 or PR108:1) are less toxic, less expensive, and slightly less saturated than pure cadmiums.”
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The site, handprint.com/HP/WCL/pigmt1b.html#cadmium , seems to be run by a knowledgeable person. However I would urge to be catious handling raw pigments and/or eating paint 😛
[There is much more stuff about cadmium (watercolours) and colour theory at this interesting site.]
Cadmium Red has always been one of the most important colours in my work and most other professional artists I no. As it is so expensive all the artist who work with this colour are very careful with it and tend to use it on their painting, not down drains etc. Most artists are very careful with materials, we also don’t want to get cancer etc. Most cleaning materials are more toxic, petrol, diesel etc. The world is going mad. We are loosing so many of our traditional painting methods. My work is very much to do with colour and the Cadmiums are vital. You could go on for ever banning artists materials. Without culture the world is going to be a very sad place. The next thing will be lets ban music it makes us deaf, this nanny way of living is ridiculous, these people need to go out and help the starving, rather then interfering with a tradition that’s gone on for Centuries.
Blame is on our Swedish party “Centerpartiet” in the Swedish Government (untilll monday anyway). At the same time they lowered taxes on artificial fertilisers containing (as total used) zillions of times more cadmium – they proposed this ban and will enforce it on all EU-contries.
Cadmium colours are very important in painting. If it’s banned, it will be a great loss for us, artists. I use cadmium colours for decades now, all my fellow artists I know are using them as well. We are very conscious with the residues and the way we dispose the residues, first of all they are very expensive and no one as an artist can afford to flush them down the drain.
Second we do not want to harm or pollute our environment as it is the source of inspiration in our work and the place where we live in. So we follow the strict regulation in place to dispose the residues.
That explains why from hundreds of years we still coexist using the so called “dangerous” Cadmiums colours.
Just watched the news here in Sweden. Much of the cadmium in the sewage (and hencce in the sewgare fertilizers) seem to come from the airports. There is no restrictions or bans on using cadmium in the “aeroplane business” (worldwide it seems).
A year ago ALL cadmium – regarding to our “sewage department” – came from artist paint…! Now this suddenly seems to have change. Maybe because we have a new governmnent who are more “picky” about finding the true sources of cadmium pollution. Unfortunately its to late for the new government to supply this “new” data to the ECHA.
I still claim (and scientists too) that much cadmium comes from the artificial fertilisers. There is no real regulation about using cadmium in the “food production industry” neither. But here the new Government will go hard on theese, and the sewage fertilisers – sice they contain much other “shit” then cadmium. (Unfortunately – there is no EU agreement about this, so crop produced in Sweden will be much more expensive – and we will loose the “price competition” in the agricultural industry) againt other EU countries. Nobody who shops cerial for their kids at the grocery knows if there is cadmium in their food (an nobody really cares when the “cadmium food” is much cheaper…)
So… Cadmium use in airoplaines/airports is not restricted at all. Cadmium use in the agricultural industry is not much restricted (and most countres in the EU do not want to make restrictions here – since there would be inflation of food prices in such a case). Cadmium levels in tobacco also is relatively high – and there is no total ban of tobacco comming up.
Instead its easy to blame us artists for everything!
There will be a decision made next december if there will be a ban on artists cadmium colours. An eventual ban will then be enforced probbably around 1/1-2016.
Sorry… An eventual ban is then probbably enforced a year after a decision is made. Around January 2017 and not 2016.