Tuesday 30 October 2018

More environmental checks to be conducted at Grenfell Tower site

The government has announced further environmental checks will be carried out in and around the Grenfell Tower site.

They are in addition to up to £50 million committed by NHS England to carry out a five-year health monitoring programme as well as ongoing air quality monitoring at the site commissioned by Public Health England, which to date indicates the risk to public health is “very low”.

The plans involve further environmental sampling of the site, including comprehensive soil analysis to check for any signs of contamination, water analysis if required and wider health monitoring and treatment options.

They are part of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, NHS England, Public Health England and the Environment Agency’s efforts to reassure survivors and local residents following the Grenfell Tower fire.

Dr Yvonne Doyle, Public Health England’s Regional Director for London said: “Since the Grenfell Tower tragedy, we have been working very closely with local health partners and the Grenfell community to ensure that they have access to best available public health evidence and advice.

“It is not unusual to find areas of contamination in cities which is often associated with historic land use or heavy traffic. It is generally considered to be very low risk to health because people would need to be exposed to the soil over long periods of time.”