Depleted Uranium In Kosovo

This report presents the findings of the first-ever international assessment of the environmental impact of depleted uranium (DU) when used in a real conflict situation. Following the confirmation by NATO that DU had been used during the Kosovo conflict, the United Nations Environment Program organized a scientific field mission to investigate the possible environmental consequences. This report presents its findings and conclusions on the presence and extent of DU contamination at the areas studied, the corresponding risks to the environment, and possible mitigation actions.

This is the first-ever international assessment of the environmental impact of depleted uranium when used in a real conflict. Field studies were undertaken in November 2000 and the results showed low levels of radioactivity with no immediate concerns over toxicity. However UNEP calls for precaution as there are scientific uncertainties and a clear need for action to be taken on the clean up and decontamination of polluted sites.

This sudy is the second major contribution by UNEP to the scientific debate on the environmental risks and behaviour of DU associated with the use of depleted uranium wepons in a real combat situation.

In the aftermath of the use of ammunition containing Depleted Uranium (DU) during the Gulf War in 1991 and in the Balkans in the nineties, a controversy emerged in the public opinion on the alleged effects of DU on man's health and on the environment. Official reports, mainly of military origin, are strongly questioned in the public opinion, being often interpreted as a justification or part of a cover-up. This controversy reached its peak towards the end of the year 2000, when DU was held responsible for the incidence of leukemia in soldiers of the Italian peace-keeping force. Having in mind how difficult it is to get scientific facts across to the general public and how strong a distrust there is against official statements, particularly when radioactivity is involved, this report summarizes the present state of knowledge about the effects of DU on man and environment. It bases on a comprehensive re-examination and critical review of the scientific literature, in particular the medical literature and reflects the authors' collective experience and expertise.

Depleted uranium (DU) ammunition was used in the years 1994-95 during the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Following on from previous UNEP field studies in Kosovo (2001, ISBN 0119869667) and in Serbia and Montenegro (2002, ISBN 9280721461), this report assesses the presence and extent of DU contamination in 14 sites investigated in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the corresponding risks to the environment, and possible mitigating actions. DU could easily be found at three of the sites investigated, confirmed by the physical presence of penetrators and jackets, as well as by soil, bio-indicator and air samples. For the first time in UNEP's studies of DU contamination in the Balkans, DU was also found in drinking water samples, albeit at extremely low levels, as well as in air samples taken from buildings currently in use. The report recommends precautionary decontamination and clean-up measures. Given the remaining scientific uncertainties on the long-term behaviour of DU in the natural environment, it calls for further studies to be done in other regions where DU ammunition has been used.

A compilation of published scientific information, including human, animal, cellular, and theoretical studies, Depleted Uranium: Properties, Uses and Health Consequences provides the most current and comprehensive collection of information on depleted uranium health hazards. The editor and her international panel of contributors are clinical and ba

This book analyses the issues surrounding the protection of the environment in times of armed conflict, and to pose questions as to its adequacy and efficacy. But the focus is not simply upon the interpretation of the legal provisions in isolation; instead, the analysis establishes a benchmark standard of environmental harm against which the adequacy and efficacy of the legal provisions can be measured.

Kosovo in the 1990s