THE risk of developing cancer as a result of exposure to dioxins is 10 times
as great as previously estimated, according to a leaked report from the US
Environmental Protection Agency. The controversial reassessment of the
threat, which the agency had planned to release in June, also warns that the
chemical can disrupt children鈥檚 nervous and immune systems.
Dioxins are a by-product of many industrial processes, including waste
incineration, paper bleaching and plastics production. The chemicals build up in
the environment and also accumulate in animal fat.
After a review of reports published over the past few years, the EPA
concludes that people who eat a lot of high-fat foods such as meat and milk
could have a 1 per cent chance of developing cancer as a result.
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There is evidence that even low levels of dioxins can disrupt children鈥檚
developing nervous and immune systems, according to the report. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the
developmental exposures that will be more significant,鈥� argues Ellen Silbergeld,
an epidemiologist and toxicologist at the University of Maryland Medical School
in Baltimore, although the EPA鈥檚 dramatic cancer estimates have attracted most
attention.
Industry sources challenge this view. 鈥淭hese draft conclusions may not hold
up to scientific scrutiny,鈥� says David Fischer of the Chlorine Chemistry Council
near Washington DC.
Fischer argues that scientists have yet to see and respond to the report, and
points out that emissions of industrial dioxin have been slashed by nearly 80
per cent over the past decade. 鈥淭he EPA has already done about as much as it can
in dealing with the large known sources of dioxin,鈥� he says.
But this isn鈥檛 enough, says Rick Hind of Greenpeace in Washington DC. He says
the EPA should insist that industrial processes producing high levels of dioxins
should be replaced by safe alternative methods.
Hind also objects to the report鈥檚 contradictory suggestion that the EPA may
decide to advise people to avoid fatty foods while also arguing that the food
supply is fundamentally safe. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 buy that,鈥� says Hind. The problem stems
from the industrial use of chlorine, he says. 鈥淲e need long-term solutions.鈥�