Vol. 519 No. 6
180 Dr. O'Hanlon asked the Minister for Health and Children the World Health Organisation's recommendations on dioxin emissions, including the efficiency of measuring such emissions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14727/00]
Dioxins belong to a group of dangerous chemicals known as persistent organic pollutants. Dioxins are mainly by-products of industrial processes but can also result from natural processes such as volcanic eruption and are found throughout the world in air, soil, water, sediment and food. The World Health Organisation advises that long-term exposure to high levels of dioxins is linked to impairment of the human immune system, the nervous system and the reproductive system. Most human exposure to dioxins is through the food supply. Protecting the food supply is most important in safeguarding public health from dioxins. Analysis of dioxins in the environment and in food requires sophisticated methods which are available in specialised laboratories mostly in industrialised countries. The WHO, through its European Centre for Environment and Health in the Netherlands, conducts periodic studies mainly in European countries to provide an assessment of human exposure to dioxins. Data on exposure show that measures introduced to control dioxin release in a number of countries have resulted in substantial reductions in exposure to these compounds over the past few years.
As dioxin compounds can be stored in the body, primarily in fatty tissues, cows milk is often taken as a sensitive indicator of the level of contamination in the food chain. The Environmental Protection Agency has conducted a study of cows milk here and has found levels of dioxin to be uniformly low and much lower than levels measured in other European countries. This survey will be repeated this year to provide up to date measurements.
