WRITTEN QUESTION E-2876/01

by Erik Meijer (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(22 October 2001)

Subject: Failure to disclose radioactive contamination in Member States after the Chernobyl disaster and better protection against thyroid cancer

1. Can the Commission confirm that the authorities failed to disclose or denied the presence of airborne radioactive contamination by caesium-137 in the east and south-east of France after the disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear power station (Ukraine) on 26 April 1986, probably to allay public fears and to safeguard domestic expansion of nuclear power stations?

2. Can the Commission say whether there are other areas outside France in the then and now Member States of the European Union where inadequate information was provided on the risks of radioactive contamination of pasture and other crops by rainfall? If so, in which areas? Did this result in inadequate measures being taken to limit the risks?

3. Has the incidence of thyroid cancer per 100 000 inhabitants risen in the Member States of the EU since 1986? Can any increase be explained by reasons other than the Chernobyl accident?

4. Are there areas within the Member States where the number of cases of thyroid cancer has risen significantly more sharply since 1986 than in other areas? If so, where?

5. At present what are the risks of products susceptible to radioactive contamination being used in food for human consumption, for example goat's milk and goat's cheese? Are the risks of mushrooms and meat from wild boar even greater and longer-lasting than those of goat's milk and goat's cheese?

6. What guarantees are there that, in the event of similar accidents in the future involving radioactive contamination from a source at a large distance, people living in the EU Member States will all receive accurate and adequate information in good time?

Source: Network news, Dutch TV1 channel, 3 October 2001

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(17 December 2001)

1. No. The Commission has no evidence indicating that the French authorities would have failed to disclose information on levels of radioactivity in France after the

Chernobyl accident. An Atlas of caesium deposition in Europe was published by the Commission(1). It was based on all the information delivered by the French regulatory authority (OPRI, Office de Protection contre les Rayonnements Ionisants) and stored in the database of environmental radioactivity data in accordance with Article 36 of the Euratom Treaty. In addition, the information resulting from specific measurement campaigns conducted e.g. by IPSN (Institut pour la Protection et la Sûreté Nucléaire) is publicly available.

2. No. In general, adequate information was provided by all Member States. It should be borne in mind that most authorities, institutes and laboratories were not quite prepared to cope with an accident of this scale, and it took some time for those involved, to decide on appropriate measures for the control of foodstuffs. At a Community level, the Commission adopted on 6 May 1986 its first Recommendation 86/156/EEC(2) to Member States including maximum tolerances in respect of marketing milk products, fruit and vegetables.

3. Yes, incidence of thyroid cancer has been rising and mortality from it has been declining in the Union, but no correlation has been found between increased incidence of thyroid cancer in the Union and the levels of radioactive fallout, in particular Iodine 131, from the Chernobyl accident. These are findings stemming from an earlier analysis performed under a research contract by the Directorate general for Research. Additionally, these findings are supported by a study on data on incidence and mortality of thyroid cancer in all Member States collected in the Eurocim database of the European Network of Cancer Registries at the World Health Organisation (WHO)/International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) in Lyon, which has been established under the Europe against Cancer programme.

4. Yes, according to the Eurocim analysis, let alone the statistical fluctuations in incidence rates due to the overall low frequency of thyroid cancer in the Union, there are some Member States Spain, France, Italy, and to a lesser extent Finland , where the rise in incidence of thyroid cancers is more pronounced, while in other Member States Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom there is not much change. In those Member States where a rise is visible it was already detectable before 1986 and there is no acceleration of rates of incidence in the relevant period after 1986. In nuce, no correlation has been found between the rise of incidence of thyroid cancer in individual Member States and the levels of radioactive fallout from the Chernobyl accident.

5. Foodstuffs continue to be controlled for their radioactivity contents in particular foodstuffs imported from third countries directly affected by the deposition of Caesium from the Chernobyl accident. Community legislation currently in force are Council Regulation (EEC) No 737/90 of 22 March 1990 on the conditions governing imports of agricultural products originating in third countries following the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power-station(3) and Commission Regulation (EC) No 1661/1999 of 27 July 1999 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 737/90 on the conditions governing imports of agricultural products originating in third countries following the accident at the Chernobyl neclear power-station(4). This includes measures to strengthen the controls with regard to wild mushrooms, which as other forest products, continue to show higher concentrations. Information on levels of radioactivity in foodstuffs within the Community is collected under Article 36 of the Euratom Treaty and regularly published. The resulting population exposure is currently less than 0,1 % of the dose limit.

6. In the event of a future accident maximum permitted levels of radioactivity in foodstuffs for a broader range of radionuclide categories have been laid down in Council Regulation (Euratom) No 3954/87 of 22 December 1987 laying down maximum permitted levels of radioactive contamination of foodstuffs and of feedingstuffs following a nuclear accident or any other case of radiological emergency(5). Since the Chernobyl accident, Member States and the Commission are much better prepared in the event of a similar accident in future. In particular, the implementation of Council Decision 87/600/Euratom on Community arrangements for the early exchange of information in the event of a radiological emergency allows information to be shared within one hour after initial notification.

(1) EUR 16733, 1998.

(2) OJ L 118, 7.5.1986.

(3) OJ L 82, 29.3.1990.

(4) OJ L 197, 29.7.1999.

(5) OJ L 371, 30.12.1987.