Thule pollution limited

Contaminants are present in the waters near the Thule Air Base in northern Greenland but they are limited to a small area, according to a recently published report by the Danish Environmental Research Institute.

The report, which examined 486 samples from the area north of the Dundas peninsula, concluded there is a high level of PCB contamination in clams in the area. In fact, the level of PCB contamination is two to 30 times higher than normal.

However, the study maintains that the impact of the contamination is limited to an area five to 10 kilometres from the base. It says the higher concentrations won’t be found in fish or marine mammals that are normally reserved for human consumption.

“Elevated PCB concentrations at Thule Air Base are not likely to affect the concentrations in seals, because their feeding areas are large and because they feed on a variety of species,” it says.