Sarajevo; A team of experts from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is preparing to visit 12 sites in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) that may have been targeted by ordnance containing depleted uranium (DU) during the 1994-95 Bosnian conflict. The team will take soil, water, air and vegetation samples at six sites that have been identified by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) as having been struck by DU weapons. They will examine six other sites that local residents believe may have also been targeted. The UNEP team will conduct its research from 12 - 24 October. The UNEP assessment is being carried out at the request of the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
At the request of the local authorities, the medical sub-team, led by an expert from the World Health Organization (WHO), will examine data on
At the request of the local authorities, the medical sub-team, led by an expert from the World Health Organization (WHO), will examine data on
cancer rates in the main urban centres of Sarajevo and Banja Luka. They will also visit a local hospital in Bratunac to meet with the local medics and with patients who may have been exposed to DU during the conflict.
"UNEP's aim is to determine whether the use of depleted uranium during the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina may pose health or environmental risks - either now or in the future," said Pekka Haavisto, Chairman of UNEP's Depleted Uranium Assessment Team. "Previous studies of DU in Kosovo and Serbia recommended that governments and civilians take precautionary action to avoid contact with DU."
"UNEP's aim is to determine whether the use of depleted uranium during the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina may pose health or environmental risks - either now or in the future," said Pekka Haavisto, Chairman of UNEP's Depleted Uranium Assessment Team. "Previous studies of DU in Kosovo and Serbia recommended that governments and civilians take precautionary action to avoid contact with DU."