Cancer for Kent: Richboro

The highest lung cancer rate in Kent is around Thanet.

Such a small area. Such a massive skew in cancers.

And an 11 year early death rate compared to the rest of Kent.

Yet we have a cargo airport on the drinking water and tipping pollution into Pegwell Bay.

A mercury factory.

A car recycling plant.

A new waste facility.

And Richboro power station derelict for years: this link details the final uses of a bitumen oil called “orimulsion” which was noted to “strip the paint off cars” from the “toxic dust”.
http://www.secure.dover.gov.uk/planning_online/acollate_docs/76361_2.pdf

This link details the latest plan for Richboro (purchased buy a new owner in 2000) and a letter form KCC highways dated April 2007) which seems to be suggesting upto 200 lorries and cars to use the site as another waste processing facility.
http://www.abandoned-britain.com/PP/richborough/1.htm

Is this “sticking all the cr#p by the coast” which is as far away from Maidstone as can be, and which becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy as the Sandwich Road attracts more pollution industries or is it a well-measured approach to clean brownfield sites, provide jobs and use wind farm technology without polluting Pegwell Bay and the 250,000 people in the nearby area?

No doubt Pfizer would then think “well hang on a minute, we could be sued by our staff for basing them near a toxic dump, maybe it’s another reason to move elsewhere or slash the tax-take”.

Councils and polluting organisations like Thor and Infratil like poorer and smaller councils: shout jobs and they’ll come running for any old rubbish. Not too many safeguards. Careers to be made in politics and the civil service. Big projects. Lots of jobs all at once supposedly. Quick fix. More votes. More council tax. Approved? Unanimously.

Don’t ask about later. Someone else can burn the bodies. Someone else can clear the sites. Or just leave it. Until? It falls down. Or becomes so toxic it’s easier to use it - for more toxic sites.

New Richboro. Will it reverse the highest lung cancer rate in Kent and the most polluted drinking water in the South East?

Will Infratil? Will Thor?

We’ve seen with Infratil and Thor that the EA and TDC are "flexible around monitoring" to the extent of removing noise and air monitors with Infratil.

Thor didn’t even close in 1987 but had permits issued by the EA to continue and to operate and store chemicals until last year – even after another chemical fire!

And our councilors and MP’s remain silent. Has anyone seen any Council agenda or meeting minutes on reversing the 11 year death rate in Thanet? Or monitoring of Infratil and Thor and Richboro?

2000 for Richboro. 2005 for Infratil. Last year for Thor. Mentioned just once in a meeting?

Easieir to issue bumf or hold "strategy meetings" or blame the public: paint down the sink, stay indoors, close the windows, it’s all normal.

The public's fault.

In a way it is.

Failed. Failed. Failed.

Time for Change.