APPENDIX 1
Memorandum submitted by Greenpeace
NATIONAL ATHLETICS
STADIUM AT
PICKETTS LOCK
I am writing with regard to the Committee's
inquiry into the proposal to locate a national athletics stadium
at Picketts Lock in north London. Greenpeace has some concerns
about this potential location which we would like to share with
the Committee.
As you may be aware, the UK's largest municipal
waste incinerator is located close to the proposed site at Picketts
Lock. There is currently an application with the Department of
Trade and Industry to dramatically expand the burning capacity
of the Edmonton incinerator to an unprecedented 830,000 tonnes
per year, more than twice the size of any other incinerator in
the UK.
Mixed municipal waste of the type burnt at Edmonton
contains a variety of extremely toxic materials. A few examples
would include: mercury in batteries, fluorescent light bulbs and
thermometers; lead in PVC plastic and batteries; brominated compounds
in electrical equipment; cadmium in pigments, PVC and batteries;
and chlorine in PVC and the preservatives in old timber. None
of the substances listed above are destroyed by incineration.
They are either vaporised (in the case of metals), or undergo
chemical reactions in the intense heat to form new and very dangerous
compounds such as dioxins, PCBs and chlorinated benzenes. Many
hundreds of chemicals are formed in this way. Microscopic dust
particles and acid gases are also created in large amounts.
The discharges of polluting materials from the
Edmonton plant are very substantial and involve literally hundreds
of tonnes of noxious materials being released into the surrounding
atmosphere. The whole area around Edmonton has been designated
an Air Quality Management Zone due to its unacceptably high levels
of particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide. Although road traffic
is the major contributor to overall atmospheric pollution in the
area, the incinerator is probably the largest point source.
The pollutants released from Edmonton incinerator
have serious health implications. For example, the Department
of Health has calculated that a mere five per cent reduction in
particulate levels in the air nationwide would result in between
200,000 and 500,000 years of life being saved annually. In addition
to concerns about particulate matter, there is also the issue
of increased exposure to the dioxins which are inevitably created
in the process of incinerating mixed municipal waste. The incinerator
also discharges other toxic chemicals such as mercury and cadmium
along with hydrogen chloride gas.
It is clear that the current incinerator at
Edmonton makes a significant negative contribution to air quality
in the area and would impact on any proposed athletics facility
at Picketts Lock. This is, in itself, an argument for siting the
facility elsewhere or closing the incinerator. However, if plans
to expand the Edmonton plant go ahead the new incinerator would
then be the largest in Europe and would generate a colossal amount
of aerial pollution. Any scheme to site an athletics facility
so close to such a massive source of harmful pollution would make
Britain a laughing stock in the sporting community and it is possible
that athletes would refuse to train or compete there.
We believe it appropriate that the Committee
should consider the matter of air quality at the Picketts Lock
site as part of its broader consideration of the project and look
forward to hearing your views on this issue. We would also be
grateful if the Committee could raise the above concerns with
the Department of Trade and Industry before a final decision on
the Edmonton expansion is made.
Please find enclosed a recent scientific report
by Greenpeace International on the health effects of incineration
and two peer-reviewed articles which have appeared since the report
was published in March this year. We hope this provides adequate
scientific background to the issue but would happily provide further
information if so requested.
28 August 2001
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