Civic Party calls for officials to state clearly if the site is safe for the public
The Civic Party last night called for a Legislative Council meeting next week for officials to explain whether dioxins are present in the soil at Tamar.
The call came after environmentalist Laurie Wan Shek-luen presented a copy of his 1993 study to substantiate claims he had found the highly toxic element at the site.
The news comes a week before the Finance Committee votes on the government's $5.1 billion funding request to build its new headquarters at Tamar. Dr Wan's study found 718.4 picograms of dioxin in each gram of sediment at the site's seabed. A picogram is a trillionth of a gram. The study found soil at Tamar contained seven different types of dioxin.
Dr Wan claimed the level of toxin was high and it was not suitable for people to work at Tamar. But a leading scientist disputed this.
The test drew soil samples from 15 locations along Victoria Harbour and measured the level of dioxins and other heavy metals. Kennedy Town topped the chart with 1,299.7 picograms of dioxin, followed by Sai Ying Pun with 951 picograms. The samples were investigated by two laboratories in the US, the Alta Analytical Laboratories and MBT Environmental Laboratories.
'It is not suitable for government officers to work [at Tamar],' Dr Wan said. 'The government should not build the headquarters without clearing the toxin. The officials must tell the truth. I sent them the report soon after it was completed in January 1994 and they have not done anything at all.
