UNEP recommends precautionary action regardin depleted uranium

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United Nations Environment Programme Recommends Precautionary Action
Regarding Depleted Uranium In Kosovo
Geneva/Nairobi, 13 March 2001 - The final report of the United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP) on the environmental impact of depleted uranium
(DU) ammunition used during the 1999 Kosovo conflict has been released here
today.

In November 2000, a UNEP field mission visited 11 of the 112 sites that were
identified as being targeted by ordnance containing DU, including five in
the Italian sector (MNB (W)) and six in the German sector (MNB (S)).

The UNEP team, consisting of 14 scientists from several countries, collected
soil, water, and vegetation samples and conducted smear tests on buildings,
destroyed army vehicles, and DU penetrators. Remnants of DU ammunition were
found at eight sites. Altogether, 355 samples were analyzed, including 249
soil samples, 46 water samples, 37 vegetation samples, 13 smear tests, three
milk samples, four jackets (specialized parts of ordnance), two penetrators,
and one penetrator fragment.

Transuranic isotopes found

Seven-and-a-half DU penetrators were found during the field mission. Low
levels of radiation were detected in the immediate vicinity of the points of
impact, and mild contamination from DU dust was measured near the targets.
There was also some evidence from bio-indicators of airborne DU
contamination near targeted sites.

In addition to U-238, which makes up the bulk of depleted uranium, the
penetrators contained uranium isotope U-236 and plutonium isotope Pu-239/240
(see UNEP press releases of 16 January and 16 February 2001). The presence
of these transuranic elements in the DU indicates that at least some of the
material has been in nuclear reactors. However, the amount of transuranic
isotopes found in the DU penetrators is very low and does not have any
significant impact on their overall radioactivity.

No widespread contamination

No widespread ground contamination was found in the investigated areas.
Therefore, the corresponding radiological and chemical risks are
insignificant. There were a great number of contamination points in the
investigated areas, but there is no significant risk related to these points
in terms of possible contamination of air or plants.

"These scientific findings should alleviate any immediate anxiety that
people living or working in Kosovo may have been experiencing," said UNEP
Executive Director Klaus Töpfer. "Under certain circumstances, however, DU
can still pose risks. Our report highlights a series of precautionary
measures that should be taken to guarantee that the areas struck by DU
ammunition remain risk-free."

Precaution recommended

It is highly likely that penetrators are still lying on the ground surface.
Although the radiological and chemical risks of touching a penetrator are
insignificant, if one was put into a pocket or somewhere else close to the
human body, there would be external beta radiation of the skin, leading to
quite high local radiation doses after some weeks of continuous exposure.
Skin burns from radiation are unlikely.

Regarding contamination points, if a child were to ingest small amounts of
soil, the corresponding radiological risk would be insignificant, but from a
biochemical point of view, the possible intake might be somewhat higher than
the applicable health standard.

"There are still considerable scientific uncertainties, especially related
to the safety of groundwater," said Pekka Haavisto, Chairman of UNEP's
Depleted Uranium Assessment Team. "Additional work has to be done to reduce
these uncertainties and to monitor the quality of water."

Remaining penetrators and jackets that may be hidden at several metres depth
in the ground, as well as any on the ground surface, constitute a risk of
future DU contamination of groundwater and drinking water. Heavy firing of
DU in one area could increase the potential source of uranium contamination
of groundwater by a factor of 10 to 100. While the radiation doses will be
very low, the resulting uranium concentration might exceed WHO health
standards for drinking water.

Although the mission findings show no cause for alarm, the report describes
specific situations where risks could be significant. There are also
scientific uncertainties relating to the longer-term behavior of DU in the
environment. For these reasons, UNEP calls for certain precautionary
actions.

According to UNEP, this precautionary action should include visiting all DU
sites in Kosovo, removing slightly radioactive penetrators and jackets on
the surface, decontaminating areas where feasible, and providing information
to local populations on precautions to be taken if DU is found.

UNEP recommends mission to Bosnia-Herzegovina

In order to reduce scientific uncertainty on the impact of DU on the
environment, particularly over time, UNEP recommends that scientific work be
undertaken in Bosnia-Herzegovina where DU ordnance has persisted in the
environment for over five years. This could be done as part of an overall
environmental assessment of Bosnia-Herzegovina.

UNEP's work in Kosovo was carried out in close cooperation with the United
Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) and the NATO Kosovo Force (KFOR), which
assisted with logistics, accommodation, transport and security.

The samples were analyzed by the Swedish Radiation Protection Institute
(SSI) in Stockholm; AC Laboratorium-Spiez in Switzerland; Bristol
University's Department of Earth Sciences in the UK; the International
Atomic Energy Agency Laboratories (IAEA) in Seibersdorf, Austria; and the
Italian National Environmental Protection Agency (ANPA) in Rome, Italy. The
assessment work on depleted uranium has been financed by the Government of
Switzerland.

IAEA, UNEP, and WHO on future cooperation

In view of the remaining scientific uncertainties surrounding the long-term
effects of the possible health and environmental impacts from the use of
depleted uranium (DU), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the World Health
Organisation (WHO), in accordance with their respective mandates, will
consider together whether it is necessary to prepare future missions to
areas where depleted uranium has been used during military conflicts.

Note to journalists:The report is available at http://www.unep.ch/balkans/.
For more information, please contact UNEP Depleted Uranium Assessment Team
Chairman Mr. Pekka Haavisto at +41-79-477-0877 or
pekka.haavisto@upi-fiia.fi; or UNEP Spokesperson Mr. Tore Brevik at
+254-2-623292 or tore.brevik@unep.org; or UNEP Press Officer Mr. Michael
Williams at +41-22-9178242, +41-79-409-1528 (cell) or
michael.williams@unep.ch.
UNEP News Release 01/36