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Welsh MEP calls for assembly inquiry into contamination
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Jill Evans MEP, a member of the Environment Committee of the European Parliament, is calling for the Welsh Assembly Government to hold an inquiry into the contamination of a quarry in south Wales. Taro Naw (Tuesday 25 September, Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Wales on S4C) investigates the situation in the first programme of a brand new series.
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Toxic chemicals, including Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and dioxins, which are linked to cancer and developmental defects, were dumped at the Brofiscin limestone quarry in Groes-faen a village eight miles outside of Cardiff, in the Sixties and Seventies before stringent regulations were introduced.
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There is concern that other sites have received toxic waste including Maendy in the Rhondda, Penrhos near Caerphilly, Rhiwabon near Wrecsam and the old Monsanto site near Newport.
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"There's been report after report but nothing's being done," says Jill Evans.
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"The Assembly Government should certainly look into this urgently and bring all the information together so that we know how to react and how to clean up the quarry."
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When questioned, a spokesperson on behalf of the Welsh Assembly Government commented: "The environmental and legal issues around Brofiscin are complex. The Environment Agency is carrying out the role required of it under contaminated land legislation in order to investigate the site and decide what remedial measures are appropriate.
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"The Welsh Assembly Government has and continues to provide funding to the agency and the local authority for investigations to gain a better understanding of Brofiscin Quarry and potential steps that could be taken to address pollution identified on the site."
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In July, the Environment Agency published the findings of a detailed report on the quarry by expert company, Atkins.
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The report confirmed that pollutants are leaking into groundwater and flowing out as surface water after heavy rainfall. The report concludes that there is no immediate danger to human health.
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But the Environment Agency's assurances are criticised by the man who conducted the first full study into contamination in Brofiscin in the Seventies.
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Douglas Gowan, who now lives in Norfolk, was called to Brofiscin farm by the National Farmers' Union in 1967 to investigate a series of suspicious deaths and abortions among cattle. He spent seven years sampling the soil and water on the site, and linked a number of toxic chemicals to a vast Monsanto plant.
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But despite his unique knowledge of the site and its contents, he claims that his attempts to help the Environment Agency have been met with indifference.
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Although the Atkins report looked at contamination of water at the site, Gowan argues that the Environment Agency should also be testing tree bark, foliage and dust in people's houses, and monitoring local residents' health, in order to assess how far the pollution is travelling.
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"You can't prove a negative," Gowan says. "If you haven't done the work you can stand up and say 'we don't know of any problem' but if someone asks 'have you actually looked?' and the answer is no, what they are saying is meaningless."
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Taro Naw has discovered that the Assembly Government has put aside Β£20million in case Brofiscin quarry needs remediation in the future.
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Experts say it could cost Β£100million to clean up the quarry and pressure is growing for the Environment Agency to claim the money from Monsanto, who dumped most of the waste at Brofiscin 30 years ago. If this does not happen, the Welsh taxpayer will end up footing the bill.
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Taro Naw, Tuesday 25 September 2007, 8.25pm,
Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Wales on S4C (English subtitles available)
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