Letter to the Editor
Published: 01 June, 2008
Letters Editor,
Fire & Rescue.
Greater London
Dear Editor,
Sidney Morning Herald reported on 13 May that there is to be a national enquiry into the incidence of cancer among firefighters. This follows a cancer cluster among firefighters at the Atherton Fire Station in North Queensland, Australia.
Firefighters have breathing masks when they deal with the poisonous fumes given off by burning plastic but there are concerns about the ingredients of fire fighting foam. Some foams such as perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) contain toxic fluoride chemicals.
This foam polluted groundwater around the site of the Buncefield explosion in Hemel Hempstead in Hertfordshire, England two years ago.
Officials there are most concerned about PFOS, which does not break down in the environment. Instead, it accumulates in organisms and works its way up the food chain, where it can become a serious problem. Following an Environment Agency report on PFOS, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) want to phase it out.
Even if replacement foams are used the ingredients need to be investigated for harmful effects on health and environment. It is now admitted that many chemicals were allowed into common usage without proper safety testing, which is why the European Union's REACH scheme plans to safety test thousands of chemicals. I hope the Australian investigation will help protect firefighters' health in the future.
Best wishes,
A. Wills.
