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Newsnight Page last updated at 16:53 GMT, Wednesday, 13 May 2009 17:53 UK

Newsnight Review
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Newsnight Scotland
Dirty tricks and toxic waste in Ivory Coast
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BBC TWO
By Meirion Jones and Liz MacKean
BBC News Video and BBC Newsnight
Audio
It is the biggest toxic dumping scandal of the 21st century, the
type of environmental vandalism that international treaties are
supposed to prevent. Now Newsnight can reveal the truth about
the waste that was illegally tipped on Ivory Coast's biggest city,
Abidjan. A giant multinational is being sued in London's High
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The truth behind Ivory Coast toxic waste dump

NEWSNIGHT BLOGS
Our investigation took us to Amsterdam where the waste could have
been safely disposed of. Instead the company, Trafigura, went for
the cheaper option and offloaded it in Abidjan. Economics: Paul Mason

Trafigura has always denied that the chemical waste was Diplomacy: Mark Urban
dangerous, but we have seen an analysis by the Dutch authorities
which reveal it to be lethal. Science: Susan Watts

We consulted a leading toxicologist, John Hoskins from the Royal Politics: Michael Crick
Society of Chemistry. He said it would bring a major city to its knees.
US: Peter Marshall
The waste includes tons of phenols which can cause death by
contact, tons of hydrogen sulphide, lethal if inhaled in high
concentrations, and vast quantities of corrosive caustic soda and
mercaptans which John Hoskins describes as "the most odorous
compounds ever produced". SEE ALSO
'Dirty tricks' over toxic waste
A terrible smell 13 May 09 |  Africa

It happened on 19 August 2006 in the dead of night. A convoy of RELATED INTERNET LINKS
trucks from a newly-formed company in Abidjan arrived to take the Trafigura
waste away. They illegally dumped the first loads at the huge tip in
T h e BBC is not responsible for the content of external
Aquedo.
internet sites
A powerful stench soon MOST POPULAR STORIES NOW
engulfed the area. The tip's
operators were called out and MOST SHARED MOST READ

the drivers sent packing.

60-foot penis painted on roof
They looked elsewhere to
drop the waste, tipping it in Huge waves in Hawaii surf contest
at least 18 places across the Coffee 'no answer to drunkenness'
city and beyond.
Battery made of paper charges up
The Aquedo tip stretches as Postcode data to be free in 2010
far as the eye can see. As Please turn on JavaScript. Media

scores of waste trucks tip requires JavaScript to play.

Watch Newsnight's 2007 investigation into Most popular now, in detail
their loads, an army of claims toxic waste was dumped in Ivory MOST SHARED MOST READ
Abidjanis cluster around, Coast
children amongst them, Darling raises National Insurance
brandishing long metal spikes. They pick through the rubbish, looking Gatorade drops Tiger Woods drink
for anything that can be sold.
Huge waves in Hawaii surf contest
Deaths At-a-glance: Pre-Budget key points

We were soon surrounded by people, only too willing to talk about Coffee 'no answer to drunkenness'
the night the toxic waste was dumped and the terrible smell that US soap cancelled after 54 years
made them gag and sicken.
Irish abortion case in Strasbourg
Why did deal of the decade fail?
Just round the corner from the dump,
There were women Day in pictures
we met Jean Francois Kouadio and his
who miscarried, and that was
wife, Fidel. very painful. But still, the Quad biker deaths witness hunt
worst was that three people,
She had been eight months pregnant two adults and a girl were
with their first child when the fumes killed by the toxic wastes. Most popular now, in detail
swamped their home. Fidel gave birth That was very hard

prematurely and the boy, Jean Claude,

died within a day. Esaie Modto, head of Djibli
village
Their second child Ama Grace was
born a year later. She too fell ill.

The doctors said that Ama Grace "was suffering from acute glycaemia
caused by the toxic wastes".

They could do nothing for her and she died.

The medical reports state a "strong presumption" that the deaths of

the two children were caused by exposure to the toxic waste and
Jean Francois and Fidel now fear they will never become parents.

Polluted water

We also visited the village of Djibi, just outside Abidjan. The waste
that was tipped here got into the water supply, killing the fish that
fed the village.

The head of Djibi, Esaie Modto, told

us that every last person here fell ill,
two thousand people:

"There were women who miscarried,

and that was very painful. But still,
the worst was that three people, two
adults and a girl were killed by the
toxic wastes. That was very hard."
Thousands of people say they were
victims of the waste
So what was it that brought such
ruin on a country that in 2006 was still struggling to recover from a
civil war?

The waste was generated as the result of an oil deal spanning three
continents. Trafigura bought a consignment of cheap and dirty
heavy oil with a high sulphur content. Instead of putting it through a
refinery, Trafigura tried to clean it up, using a do-it-yourself method,
so they could sell it on at a massive profit.

They used a ship called the Probo Koala which they stationed off
Gibraltar as a rough and ready refinery. Caustic soda and a catalyst
were added to the oil which reacted with the sulphur and settled to
the bottom of the tank. Trafigura were then able to sell the oil, but
left with a toxic sludge at the bottom of the tank.

"Smelly but not dangerous"

The Probo Koala went to Amsterdam where they attempted to unload

this sulphurous tar as if it were normal ships' waste, which would
have cost a few thousand euros.

However the fumes were so

bad, the emergency services
were called and the Dutch
authorities carried out tests.
They discovered the waste
was highly toxic and told
Trafigura that it would cost
half a million euros to dispose
of safely.

The Probo Koala instead Please turn on JavaScript. Media

 pumped the waste back on requires JavaScript to play.
Watch the 2007 Newsnight interview with
board and left port, ending up Eric de Turckheim, co-founder of Trafigura
in West Africa.

Marietta Harjono of Greenpeace Nederland says this has led to a

prosecution by the Dutch authorities for "falsification of papers - they
deliberately were silent on the toxic nature of the waste", as well as
for illegal import of toxic waste and "illegal export of toxic waste from
Europe to Cote d'Ivoire".

When Newsnight first investigated the toxic dumping scandal in 2007

one of Trafigura's founders Eric de Turckheim told Jeremy Paxman
"these materials were not dangerous for human beings. It was smelly,
but not dangerous."

Newsnight's new investigation shows this was far from the case.
Trafigura continues to deny any wrongdoing.

Read Trafigura's full statement

Watch Meirion Jones and Liz MacKean's investigation in full on

Newsnight on Wednesday 13 May 2009 at 10.30pm on BBC Two.

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