The Royal Society, Britain's eminent body of scientists, called yesterday for the monitoring of soil, water and milk in regions of the world where DU rounds were fired, notably Iraq and Kosovo.

An inquiry by the society found chronic health hazards from DU shells might need to be assessed over a period of decades because of the continuing hazards posed by buried munitions.

An expert committee of independent scientists found that although the health risks were very small, they could still be significant – especially for children exposed to environmental contamination.

It is estimated that between 70 and 80 per cent the depleted uranium rounds fired in the Gulf War and Balkans conflicts still lie buried. About 340 tons of DU munitions were used in the Gulf and 11 tons were fired in the Balkans.

Professor Brian Spratt of Imperial College London, who chaired the Royal Society working party, said two of the main concerns were leaching of uranium into local water supplies and localized contamination of soil where children played.

"Infants can ingest surprisingly high amounts of soil. I think the long-term risk is from drinking water if uranium levels got above a certain point," Professor Spratt said.

Exposure levels for people living in areas where DU rounds are still buried are difficult to estimate, the report says. "These levels could range from being so small that they do not materially increase the concentration of uranium naturally present in the environment to worst-case scenarios such as the soil around a penetrator [shell] impact site, or a penetrator lodging directly in contact with groundwater that could feed uranium directly into a local water supply, such as a well.".

Uranium is a toxic substance and can cause potentially fatal kidney damage if enough is swallowed or inhaled. The Royal Society suggests soil from contaminated battlefields should be removed if the area is to be repopulated with civilians.

DU is used in anti-tank weapons because it can penetrate the thickest armor. In addition to being chemically toxic, DU is also slightly radioactive, raising fears it can cause cancers and other illnesses.

The scientists estimated, however, that even in the most heavily contaminated areas, the risk of extra cancers caused by inhaling depleted uranium in the soil was exceptionally low – amounting to about six extra cases of fatal lung cancer in a population of 10 million people.

An earlier report by the working party found the increased risk of lung cancer would only become significant for highly exposed soldiers, such as those who survived a direct hit on their tank or other military personnel involved in a rescue mission immediately after a direct hit.

"Any extra risks of death from leukemia, or other cancers, as a result of exposure to DU are estimated to be substantially lower than the risks of death from lung cancer," the Royal Society report says.

"Under all likely exposure scenarios the extra lifetime risks of fatal leukemia are predicted to be too small to be detectable," it says.

© 2002 lndependent Digital (UK) Ltd

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