----- Original Message ----- From: Miroslav Antic <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: Skwl <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; Siem News <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; Otava-1 <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; NSP <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; NATO <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; LJudska Prava <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; Du-Watch <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; SIM Egroups <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; SerbianNewsNetwork <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; Sin <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Saturday, February 17, 2001 6:11 PM Subject: Kosovo: UN agency confirms plutonium found in depleted uranium ammunition [STOPNATO.ORG.UK] STOP NATO: NO PASARAN! - HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.ORG.UK --------------------------- ListBot Sponsor -------------------------- Build a marketing database and send targeted HTML and text e-mail newsletters to your customers with List Builder. http://www.listbuilder.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosovo: UN agency confirms plutonium found in depleted uranium ammunition http://www.un.org/News/dh/latest/page2.html#30 16 February Traces of plutonium have been detected in the depleted uranium ammunition found at sites in Kosovo that were investigated last November by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the agency announced today, saying the findings were not cause for immediate alarm. In a statement released in Geneva, UNEP said the existence of plutonium was confirmed by the two laboratories that analyzed the ammunition tips -- called penetrators -- the Swiss AC-Laboratory Spiez and the Swedish Radiation Protection Institute (SSI). Together with three other European laboratories, these labs have been analysing a total of 340 soil, water and other samples taken during the November field mission, which included experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The traces of isotopes Pu-239/240 were found in four different penetrators. The amount of plutonium in the penetrators varied from 0.8 to 12.87 "becquerels" -- a measure of radioactivity -- per kg. In January, UNEP confirmed that some labs had also found the uranium isotope U-236 in the penetrators. The presence of these elements in the depleted uranium indicates that at least some of the material has been in nuclear reactors. However, the amount of plutonium found in the penetrators is very low and does not have any significant impact on their overall radioactivity, UNEP said. "According to an assessment by the Swiss AC-Laboratory Spiez, these newest findings about the composition of the depleted uranium only lead to a minor change in the overall radiological situation and should therefore not cause any immediate alarm," said UNEP Executive Director Klaus Toepfer. UNEP's recommendations on what steps should be taken next will be based on the full set of laboratory analyses, which are still ongoing, and will be presented in early March in the report on the environmental effects of depleted uranium in Kosovo, Mr. Toepfer noted. A byproduct of nuclear power, depleted uranium is used for heavy tank armour, anti-tank munitions, missiles and projectiles. http://www.un.org/News/dh/latest/page2.html#30 Miroslav Antic, http://www.antic.org/SNN/ ______________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
