Why living in Shannon, Quebec, is bad for your health

[friendly_iconoclast]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/why-living-in-shannon-quebec-is-bad-for-your-health-8773342.html

Why living in Shannon, Quebec, is bad for your health

Water quality was once a source of pride for a town in the shadow of an arms factory. Now, 500 cancers have been diagnosed
Benjamin Shingler

Sunday 18 August 2013


Jean Bernier slows his car to a stop on a quiet, tree-lined street. “They call this the ‘red zone’,” he says, gesturing towards a row of tidy bungalows. “Nearly everybody here had cancer. You could go from house to house and probably find someone in each.”

Mr Bernier, 60, lives in Shannon, Quebec, a town that has been plagued by abnormally high rates of certain cancers. Medical professionals have pointed the finger at the town’s Valcartier military base, where trichloroethylene (TCE) – a solvent which strips grease from metal – was used by a munitions manufacturer for more than 40 years.

Although it was confirmed in 1997 that the solvent had seeped into the town’s water supply, residents say repeated calls for a full investigation have fallen on deaf ears. However, after years of waiting, they may soon get some answers.

In May, Quebec public health officials set up an international committee of experts to examine more than 500 cases of people diagnosed with cancer in the area. Rene Bouchard, a spokesman for the public health agency, says the researchers are collecting evidence and plan to meet again this autumn...

[Demeter]

1. Military is in the Death Business; Why Should They Care?

All that money, manpower and time put into more and better ways to kill people. Doesn't matter where the people are, who they are, or where they come from--the business is Death.