THE Ministry of Defence has "no plans" for further test- firing of radioactive depleted uranium(DU) anti-tank shells at a Scottish range, officials confirmed yesterday.
The announcement follows the first controversial live-fire trials since 2001 at Dundrennan, Kirkudbrightshire, overlooking the Solway Firth, over two days earlier this month.
The test was staged by QinetiQ on behalf of the MoD and involved firing 20 of the armour-piercing rounds against paper targets to avoid the risk of contamination from the toxic dust plume which can result from a direct hit on solid objects.
The Army fired an average 300 rounds annually at Dundrennan for 20 years up to 2001 to "prove" ammunition samples selected at random from batches supplied by Royal Ordnance.
A report published last year found that worms recovered from the testing ground had "significant traces" of uranium isotopes in them.
Despite claims that contamination from the use of DU tank and aircraft cannon shells during the Kosovo campaign and in both Gulf wars had caused cancer and leukaemia among those exposed to the debris, the MoD insists there is no conclusive evidence pointing to cancer risks in humans.
The environmental report said: "Many of the soil samples from the Dundrennan firing range had uranium concentrations and isotopic signatures indicative of contamination with DU.
"Furthermore, plants and earthworms collected from above and within contaminated soils respectively also had uranium isotopic signatures strongly influenced by DU, indicating that DU was indeed assimilated into biological tissues."
DU is a cheap by-product of the nuclear industry which can be shaped into penetrator rods used to tip tank ammunition. It is the hardest substance yet discovered and can defeat all known tank armour.
It also produces catastrophic incendiary effects inside armoured vehicles once it smashes through their outer hulls, ensuring one-hit kills against enemy vehicles by setting off fuel and ammunition.
An MoD spokeswoman said yesterday: "The firings are necessary to carry out safety checks on the ammunition.
"Comprehensive monitoring programmes involving air, water and soil sampling have been in place at and around Kirkcudbright since the beginning of the trials.
"The findings continue to show DU does not pose a significant risk to the public."
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