Archived press release

Public still denied pollution truth...but EA inventory 'a first step into the light'

12 May 1999

The Government's new 'Pollution Inventory' will be launched on Wednesday by environment minister Michael Meacher MP. But the scheme will fall short of the“comprehensive pollution inventory” promised by Labour before the Election, Friends of the Earth warned today [1]. Instead it will only report on releases from Britain's biggest factories.

FOE is calling for an amendment to the Pollution Prevention and Control Bill - to be debated in Parliament later this month- to give the Environment Agency the power to produce an inventory which includes releases from rubbish dumps, sewage treatment works, transport, smaller factories and other pollution sources.

The new 'Pollution Inventory' also fails to tell the public the truth about potential health-threats from the chemicals listed as having been released into the environment. In February, FOE launched 'Factorywatch' (www.foe.co.uk/factorywatch). The web site uses official data to give comprehensive information on the health threats from factory pollution in every local area (including those factories releasing most cancer-causing chemicals).Last week FOE published research proving for the first time in Britain that low income areas suffer most from industrial pollution (www.foe.co.uk/pollution-injustice).

Mike Childs, Senior Pollution Campaigner at Friends of the Earth, said:
“People have a right to the truth about pollution in their area. What are the major sources? What damage can pollution do to our health? The Environment Agency's Pollution Inventory into the full light of public scrutiny. But there is a long way to meet Labour's Election promise to produce 'comprehensive pollution inventories'. It shouldn't be left to non-Government organisations like FOE to give the public access to the truth about pollution and health. That's the Government's job - and it will remains a key test of Labour's election promise to put the environment at the heart of policy-making.”

NOTES TO EDITORS
[1] Michael Meacher will launch the Pollution Inventory at the Baltic Exchange at 10.10 am on Wednesday 12th May.

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Published by Friends of the Earth Trust