U.N. says Asian tsunami dislodged hazardous waste

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Hazardous waste, dislodged by the Asian tsunami, poses health risks to affected nations, a U.N. report said on Tuesday, citing people in Somalia suffering from mouth bleeds, respiratory infections and skin conditions.

The tsunami, triggered by a massive earthquake in the Indian Ocean killed an estimated 300,000 people in 11 countries, most of them in Asia but reaching as far as the coast of East Africa.

A U.N. Environmental Programme (UNEP) report said the tsunami had dislodged hazardous materials, causing a threat to public health, and cited Somalia, where other countries had dumped their hazardous and nuclear waste over the years.

“Somalia’s coastline has been used as a dumping ground for other countries’ nuclear and hazardous wastes for many years as a result of the long civil war and the consequent inability of the authorities to police shipments or handle the wastes,” the report said.

“Many people in Somalia’s impacted areas are complaining of unusual health problems including respiratory infections, mouth bleeds and skin conditions,” it said.

The report also said thousands of wells and water sources had been contaminated in the affected countries.

The report summarised an environmental impact study done by UNEP at the request of the governments of Sri Lanka, Thailand, Indonesia, Maldives, Seychelles, Yemen and Somalia.

“The report provides a preliminary ground-level look at the tsunami’s impact on various sectors of the region’s environment, it highlights problems in need of immediate attention”, UNEP executive director Klaus Toepfer told a news conference. 

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