Irish Examiner - 27/06/05
Tackle the real risks to children’s health

THE recent resignation of David Coghlan, consultant paediatrician to Cork University Hospital, prompts the question: “How are we minding our children?”

He mentioned that 5% of the children of the region should be receiving help from his unit, but he does not have the facilities to see them all.

It’s time to start tackling the problems another way by removing or minimising the causes?

Already we have made a start - our petrol is now lead-free and our workplaces are non-smoking.

The Government must now drop its plans for incinerators, build on the huge recycling effort that is being made, and take up the challenge of waste minimisation and clean production.

Dutch paediatrician Dr ten Tusscher stated at the EPA licence oral hearing on the proposed Ringaskiddy incinerators that he has found, even at what were thought to have been acceptable levels of dioxin contamination, physical and mental damage to children.

He said that while studies on the health effects of incinerators had been conducted mostly on adults, children were 25 times more seriously affected.

Are we going to stand back and allow our various government agencies forfeit our children’s health because they cannot think of a better way of dealing with our rubbish?

Ciaran Fitzgerald
‘Seawinds’
Shanagarry
Co Cork