The Anglo-Dutch multinational, Unilever, has admitted that the mercury contaminated waste dumps exposed by Greenpeace and local citizens' groups two weeks ago, originated from its mercury thermometer factory in the Indian tourist town of Kodiakanal.

Although its Indian subsidiary, Hindustan Lever, initially denied responsibility for the 5.3 tonnes of wastes lying at the Munjikal scrapyard in Kodaikanal, it finally closed its factory pending an investigation and has said it will assess the environmental consequences of the dump.

"Mercury production and trade is banned in The Netherlands, where Unilever is based, because it's so toxic yet the company continues to use mercury in its operations in India. It's time Unilever implemented the same standards worldwide and stopped using and trading mercury and mercury products," said Navroz Mody, Campaigns Director of Greenpeace India.

Hindustan Lever claims to have employed an international consultant, Dames & Moore to advise it on assessing and remediating the environmental consequences of its waste dumping. The Indian representatives of this company have submitted guidelines for clearing the mercury-contaminated wastes lying in Munjikal.

Although Greenpeace and the Tamilnadu Alliance Against Mercury (TAAM) consider Hindustan Lever's admission of responsibility to be a good first good step, they are aware that the company has still not apologised to the people and workers of Kodiakanal. They are also concerned that it is downplaying the extent of its bad practices as over its17 years of operation, several batches of wastes, potentially contaminated with mercury, were dispatched from the factory and may now be untraceable and spread out over various parts of Tamilnadu and beyond.

Despite the company's assurances that its production practices poses no risk to the workers, statements from workers and ex-workers recorded by the Alliance indicate that mercury was handled casually in the factory shop-floor lending weight to allegations by many workers of occupational exposure to mercury and associated health effects.

"Workers tell us that mercury spillage on the floor, and intentional and accidental handling of mercury is routine within the factory. Workers were certainly exposed to mercury vapours, more in some sections than others," said Dr. Kolhatkar, a medical doctor and member of the Kodaikanal Consumer Action Group.

At a press conference held in Chennai, India today, TAAM stated:

• In a letter to Greenpeace India, Hindustan Lever agreed to track and retrieve other batches of waste that have been sent to various locations outside the factory, and to clearing up the wastes that have been dumped in the watershed forests behind the factory wall.
  
• That its concern extends beyond the Munjikal dump. The fact that this company, which vehemently denied all charges of wrongdoing, now admits that such wastes may be lying in various locations outside the factory fuels our concern of the long-term impact to the water bodies in those areas.
  
• The Alliance issued an appeal to the Tamilnadu public and to the Government to look out for any stockpiles or dumps of glass or thermometer wastes and report the same to the Alliance and/or the Tamilnadu Pollution Control Board.

Note's to Editors:

• On March 7, residents of Kodaikanal, HLL's ex-workers and Greenpeace exposed HLL's recently discovered 15-tonne mercury waste dumpsite and demonstrated at the factory gates, demanding an immediate end to the mercury pollution. Mercury, in the presence of water, readily converts into methyl mercury, a deadly poison, which is persistent in the environment and moves through the food chain magnifying up to 100,000 times in quantity by the time it reaches the top predators in aquatic ecosystems.
  
• The Tamilnadu Alliance Against Mercury comprises local, national and international environmental, worker and human rights organisations.
  
• Owing to the extreme toxicity of some of the mercury compounds and the practical difficulty in keeping pollution to harmless levels has resulted in various national and regional initiatives to eliminate all releases of mercury into the environment. In India, mercury is still classified as a low-level hazard according to the Ministry of Environment.

For more information please contact Greenpeace Press Office: Tel: 020 7865 8255/6/7/8

 

 

Mumbai/Chennai, 09 March, 2001

Palni Hills Conservation Council, United Citizens Council of Kodaikanal, Greenpeace and New Delhi-based Toxics Link have dismissed as an "insensitive PR exercise" Hindustan Lever's official response of temporarily suspending production at their polluting mercury thermometer factory in Kodaikanal. The groups were responding to HLL's attempt to "cover up" their environmental crime by saying that there was a "remote chance" that mercury-containing broken thermometers may have left the factory and attributing it to a possible "human error."

On March 7, the people of Kodaikanal (a beautiful hill town in South India), took action against Hindustan Lever's mercury thermometer factory after they found several illegal and polluting mercury waste dumpsites in Kodaikanal. Hindustan Lever is a 51% owned subsidiary of Anglodutch multinational Unilever. The Indian thermometer unit uses a second-hand plant that was relocated from the United States to manufacture thermometers for export to the United States.

"On March 7 Hindustan Lever vehemently denied all allegations. On March 8, they admitted that there is a remote possibility that contaminated wastes may have left the factory. Now they are looking at dismissing the whole thing as the result of a small human error. This sounds uncannily like Carbide's sabotage theory in Bhopal," said Navroz Mody, Greenpeace campaign director. "We are just not interested in a Bhopal-style cover-up. If Hindustan Lever does not know how much mercury contaminated wastes has left its factory, it is irresponsible and insensitive to say that what left the factory was only "some glass with mercury waste."

In Kodaikanal, ex-workers, community groups and concerned individuals are getting together to launch an anti-mercury front. Members of the to-be-launched front are unhappy at what they call HLL's "continued posturing rather than offering an immediate and full acknowledgement of the existence of the problem and an unconditional apology for the mercury pollution."

Hindustan Lever's statement that production would be resumed only after HLL "had fully satisfied itself that the factory's continued operation would not cause any hazard to the local environment," has also drawn the community's ire.

"We're not just talking about ongoing or future pollution. We're talking about the deadly mercury wastes that we saw dumped in the forests; the tonnes and tonnes of broken thermometers that are now lying in the scrapyard," said R. Kannan of Palni Hills Conservation Council. "Hindustan Lever is treating us like we are some idiots. They should get this straight. If they want to continue using mercury, let them take their factory back to America."

The environmental and community groups have demanded that:

1. HLL should apologise to the people of Kodaikanal for the pollution caused by the factory in Kodaikanal;
2. HLL should ensure that the financial well-being of current workers is not jeopardised by their decision to suspend operations;
3. HLL should cooperate fully with the authorities and pay for the isolation and clean-up of the mercury scrapyard in Moonjikal using the state-of-the-art in environmental remediation;
4. HLL should permanently end the use of mercury;
5. HLL should pay for a comprehensive environmental impact assessment and come clean with all details about the history of illegal and unsound dumping by the factory;
6. HLL should pay for a full medical investigation of all its ex- and current workers and potentially affected community members;
7. HLL should pay for full restoration of health of the people contaminated because of mercury pollution from the thermometer factory;
8. HLL should account for all the wastes that have historically left the factory.

 

 

 

Kodaikanal, India, March 7 2001, Greenpeace today accused Anglo-Dutch multinational Unilever, owners of Lipton Tea and Dove soap, of double standards and shameful negligence for allowing its Indian subsidiary, Hindustan Lever, to dump several tonnes of highly toxic mercury waste in the densely populated tourist resort of Kodaikanal and the surrounding protected nature reserve of Pambar Shola, in Tamilnadu, Southern India.

Greenpeace activists and concerned residents cordoned off a contaminated dump site in the centre of Kodaikanal to protect people from the mercury wastes that have been recklessly discarded in open or torn sacks by Hindustan Lever which manufactures mercury thermometers for export, mainly to the United States. According to Hindustan Lever, from there, the thermometers are sold to Germany, UK, Spain, USA, Australia and Canada. The factory, set up in 1977, was second-hand plant imported from the United States, after the US factory was shutdown for unknown reasons.

Mercury is highly poisonous and exposure to even a small amount through air, water or skin, exerts severe effects on the central nervous system (brain) and kidneys. Foetuses and young children are particularly at risk of poisoning by mercury.

Unilever states (2) that its policy is to "exercise the same concern for the environment wherever [it] operate[s]", "ensure the safety of its products and operations for the environment" and "provide whatever information and advice is necessary on the safe use and disposal of [its] products". Yet workers at the Indian factory are offered no protection from the mercury spills and several workers have complained of health problems which, they allege, is caused by their exposure to mercury in the workplace.

Navroz Mody, Greenpeace's Toxics Campaigner in India and a long-time resident of Kodaikanal said: "Unilever claims to be concerned for the safety of its operations and the environment but this attitude clearly does not stretch to India. As the major shareholder (1), it has a duty to ensure the health and safety of the workers, residents and environment around this plant. Unilever's customers world-wide should bring immediate pressure to bear to put a stop to this negligent operation and dangerous trade."

Today, thermometer waste contaminated with mercury is dumped as crushed or broken glass with unsuspecting recycling merchants. Greenpeace and the Palni Hills Conservation Council (PHCC) also warned that contaminated waste has been dumped behind the factory wall onto the slopes leading to Pambar Shola, an important and protected nature sanctuary.

Mody continued, "Unilever is taking advantage of lax environmental controls in a developing country. It would not be tolerated outside their factories or in their nature reserves in rich nations, so why should we accept their double standards and their pollution. Unilever must take responsibility for this negligence, stop production and make an immediate assessment of the damage it's caused to both current and ex-workers as well as the local environment."

Notes to Editors:

1. http://www.unilever.com
2. Unilever owns a 51% share of Hindustan Lever.
3. Dumping mercury contaminated wastes violates Indian law under the Hazardous Waste Rules (Management and Handling), 1989.

Greenpeace and Palni Hills Conservation Council hold Unilever liable and demand that:

1. It stops the use of mercury in the Hindustan Lever Thermometer factory immediately and ensures that the livelihoods of workers are not jeopardised by the company's negligent behaviour;
2. Conducts a full investigation into the extent and nature of mercury pollution caused by the factory within its premises, at the scrap yard and in the surrounding environment.
3. Clean up the Munjikal dump site as it poses an immediate and ongoing threat to children at an adjacent school and densely populated community. Hindustan Lever must account for all past waste shipments to other parts of Tamilnadu.
4. Conduct a full investigation to assess the damage to health among Lever's current and ex-workers, and compensate them for the loss of quality of life;
5. Accept responsibility and financial liability for the damage done to workers, community and environment of Kodaikanal and the Palni Hills.