A long-awaited US study on the effects on dioxin chemicals contains strong indications that they may be 10 times more dangerous than envisaged up to now. This is despite plummeting levels of the chemicals in the developed world.
The draft findings of the US Environmental Protection Agency have led to calls on the Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, to withdraw six regional waste management plans which propose building large municipal incinerators to deal with the unprecedented volumes of Irish waste. Incinerators are a major source of dioxins, although levels have been decreasing.
The EPA report suggests that the cancer risk in some circumstances may be 1 in 100 - 10 times higher than previous estimates. Together with incinerators, the chemical industry and combustion systems are the biggest contributors to dioxin levels in the environment.
The report, which was leaked to the Washington Post, notes that emissions have plummeted since the 1970s, but says they may still pose a significant cancer risk to some people. The chemicals enter the food chain when animals eat contaminated plants. They accumulate in the fat of mammals and fish and have been linked to cancers in humans, including lymphomas and lung cancer.
For a small segment of the population who eat large amounts of fatty foods, such as meats and dairy products, which are relatively high in dioxins, the odds of developing cancer could be as high as 1 in 100, the report says. Exposure to dioxin occurs over a lifetime and the danger is cumulative.
Dr Conchur O Bradaigh, of the pressure group Galway for a Safe Environment, said that the Connacht Waste Management Plan, which proposes building an incinerator near Galway city, should be withdrawn in the light of the EPA findings. GSE also called on Mr Dempsey to terminate all proposals to introduce incineration and to withdraw his recent statement indicating that it was a safe technology.
A spokesman for the Minister said he would await formal publication of the report next month, but would be "examining the findings in great detail".
