14 DAY TRIAL // Recently, SEPA (Scottish Environment Protection Agency) has started looking into the quality of the land around the RAF (Royal Air Force) station in Kinloss, north-east Scotland.
Apparently, what sparked their interest in the matter is the media's drawing attention to the fact that the Scottish Ministry of Defence (MOD) might have knowingly sold contaminated parts of the land surrounding the Kinloss station to the communities of people living nearby.
Reports claim that this area of land had been contaminated at some point during the Second World War, as aircrafts, which were at the time coated in radium, were buried here. Thus, the area poses quite a significant risk for radioactivity.
Recent investigations on the matter also report traces of sulphur mustard chemical weapons in this region, which means that the population living nearby runs the risk of being affected by severe burns and even cancer.
According to BBC Scotland, a report on the quality of land in the area was supposed to bring these problems into the light quite a while ago, in 2004. However, the findings of this report have only recently been made public.
Naturally, the MOD claims that all accusations are null and void and that there aren't any risks as far as public health in the area is concerned.
Richard Lochhead, the Scottish Environment Minister, didn't waste any time in contacting the press and letting them know that he personally demanded that a transparent investigation on these potential issues be carried out as quickly as possible.
According to TheEcologist, Richard Lochhead's exact words were: “I understand that the MOD is conducting investigations into possible contamination at the site. The Secretary of State for Defence must ensure that this work is comprehensive, transparent and completed as soon as practically possible. Should the presence of radioactive contamination be confirmed I will press the MOD to work with SEPA and start remediation work as a matter of urgency”.
As anxiety levels gradually increase amongst the people in Kinloss, we can only hope that both the Ministry of Defence and the Environment Minister will stand by their words and properly investigate the matter.