THE Ministry of Defence is about to order Royal Navy diving teams to
recover depleted uranium shells from the seabed off the Kirkcudbright
coast in a major investigation of possible radioactive contamination of
the area.
The move follows circulation of a United States Department of Defence
study which claims that the low-level radioactive core of these warheads
can pose an unexpectedly significant cancer threat to both humans and
animals when the weapons are used in a concentrated area, particularly
in water.
Between 3000 and 4000 of the anti-tank shells have been test fired at
the Dundrennan range into the Solway Firth over the past year, according
to Ministry of Defence figures.
A Ministry spokeswoman admitted yesterday that divers would shortly
begin operations ''to recover a small number of the DU rounds from the
seabed in order to allow laboratory assessment of their reaction to
exposure to seawater''.
Each of the rounds is tipped with a uranium alloy penetrator more than
two and a half times as dense as the hardest steel. The warhead can
shear through all known tank armour.
They are made from low-level radioactive material which consists
mainly of the element 238U. This is a by-product of the uranium
enrichment process used to make fissionable material for nuclear weapons
and reactors.
The US report, compiled by Dr Joe Osterman, the Pentagon's director of
environmental and health sciences, says: ''Intensive use of DU
penetrators in military testing and operations results in remnants that
are subject to atmospheric oxidation and or aqueous corrosion.
''Either process can lead to environmental contamination that has the
potential to cause adverse impacts on human health, primarily through
the water pathway.''
It adds that the uranium penetrator can oxidise immediately on impact
with a target, or more slowly if it misses the target and impacts with
ground or water, producing localised concentrations of highly toxic
particles.
The alarm bells are now ringing in Whitehall because the US study also
points out that ''oxidised forms of uranium are more soluble in water,
and thus potentially more available for ingestion by humans and
animals''.
Seawater is many times more corrosive than fresh water, and the vast
majority of the British test firings have taken place into the sea.
The US military launched an immediate environmental study into the
hazards of DU ammunition in the aftermath of the Gulf war. US forces
fired at least 5000 tank rounds containing the material, and A-10 attack
aircraft and Apache helicopter gunships fired tens of thousands of
smaller-calibre DU shells.
The British Army admits to using between 80 and 90 DU anti-tank rounds
during the final stages of the ground battle for Kuwait.
In direct contradiction of UK official claims that there was a minimal
risk of contamination to allied ground forces, the US study says: ''In
combat situations involving the widespread use of DU munitions, the
potential for inhalation, ingestion, or implantation of depleted uranium
compounds may be locally significant.''
It says that preliminary investigation has shown that ''only those
projectiles which
impact hard targets -- such as tanks or other armoured vehicles --
produce large quantities of radioactive particulates'' but that these
particles can spread and pose a health hazard in either wind or water.
Hundreds of US Gulf veterans and a smaller number of British
Servicemen have complained of Desert Storm Syndrome, a medical complaint
which many blame on radioactive contamination, and which can produce
symptoms ranging from persistent headaches to weight and hair loss or
skin infections.
A number of the men worst affected were infantry who had to advance
into Iraqi positions where vehicles had been struck a short time before
by fire from US Abrams or British Challenger tanks.
A DU round which penetrates armour plate sends molten fragments
through the interior of the vehicle, exploding fuel and ammunition
stored within, and turns into a particle cloud of uranium oxide in the
resultant fireball.
According to US military sources, new evidence shows that the dangers
from the ammunition are multiple. Troops in vehicles loaded with DU
shells receive the equivalent radiation dose of a chest X-ray every 20
to 30 hours.
But the major cancer risk comes from inhaling particles from a shell,
or having it penetrate the body via a wound, or by swallowing it in
water. While 238U's alpha radiation does not travel far, and can be
blocked by a piece of paper or by skin, it is deadly once it enters the
human system.
Large doses, apart from their carcinogenic effects, can also cause
metal poisoning similar to that of lead. Lower doses can damage the
kidneys and the lungs.
The UK has been testing DU rounds at Dundrennan and at Eskmeals in
Cumbria since 1982.
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