John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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Question 440: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if his attention has been drawn to illegal dumping taking place in Somalia; if he has raised the issue at European Union level; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10134/05]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The tsunami which struck southern Asia on 26 December last, was also felt as far away as the coast of Somalia on the Horn of Africa. I have been deeply concerned by reports that the huge waves which reached Somalia are believed to have stirred up tonnes of nuclear and toxic waste illegally dumped in the war-racked country from the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s.

Apart from killing about 300 people and destroying thousands of homes, the waves are said to have broken up rusting barrels and other containers and dumped the hazardous waste contained therein along Somalia's long coastline. These claims have been made in a post-tsunami report prepared by the United Nations Environment Programme, UNEP, earlier this year. UNEP reported that waste ranging from medical to chemical waste products is now scattered on land. UNEP also reported, worryingly, that higher than normal rates of Somalis in the north-eastern areas were ill with diseases such as respiratory infections, mouth ulcers and bleeding, abdominal haemorrhages and unusual skin infections. UNEP has also warned that this current situation poses an environmental threat to all areas in the eastern Africa sub-region.

Somalia has been without a central Government since 1991 and although progress has been made in recent times with the installation of a transitional Government, much still needs to be done. There are suspicions that some European companies may have used Somalia in the past as a dumping ground for hazardous waste including uranium radioactive waste, lead, cadmium, mercury and hospital waste. There is little information available on the extent to which illegal dumping may be continuing to take place in Somalia.

In its report, UNEP called for the dispatch of a multi-agency expert mission to the region in order to fully investigate the situation. The joint UNEP-UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs environment unit in Geneva continues to look into reported hazardous waste and nuclear deposits along the Somali coastline. Along with other relevant parties, the unit is planning an inter-agency field assessment mission to identify the scope and nature of the problem and to determine the follow up actions required.

Ireland continues to keep apprised of this issue and I look forward to receiving further information on the current situation in Somalia from planned field assessment missions.