Lafarge can't get away with burning RLFs in France but our Government will not give us the same protection.

The current issue of Lafarge supplying a potentially dangerous substandard product is dismissed by them as a 'minor technical issue. we are asked to believe that:

a) A group of rogue employees was responsible for 28 months of false reporting. (Was this the only area they falsely reported on?)

b) That senior management knew nothing of this. (If so, incompetence and criminal negligence at the highest level, are words which come to mind)

c) That their own policy document ISO 9001 is not applicable in this instance.

d) That the Environment Agency can be relied upon to protect our health and environment. Also that Lafarge statistics, used by the EA as the source of its statistics, are reliable.

We also find that the Health & Safety Executive are also prepared to compromise the health of the population. Remember the film Erin Brockovich, based on a true story?

The same chemical which poisoned the water supply in that film, Chromium V1, has been the subject of a recent directive dated January 17 2005. However, our dear friends at the HSE have declared that they will not be enforcing it.

Instead they will leave it to the cement companies to regulate it themselves.

Is there anyone out there with enough 'bottle' to expose this horrendous state of affairs?

S M. Salmons

submitted on email