Water poison effects 'unlikely'

Water supplies to 20,000 people in the Camelford area were affected

A draft report into water poisoning in north Cornwall in 1988 concludes the chemicals are unlikely to have caused delayed or persistent health effects.

The findings are likely to anger many who claim they suffered ill-effects after the Camelford incident.

On 6 July 1988, 20 tonnes of aluminium sulphate were poured into the wrong tank at the Lowermoor treatment works.

North and East Cornwall Primary Care Trust says the government draft report will be published on Wednesday.

Public consultation

Water supplies to 20,000 people in the Camelford area were affected during the Lowermoor incident.

The report by the Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (COT) is considered to be the most comprehensive into the contamination.

Experts have gathered evidence on any possible long-term health implications for the thousands who drank the contaminated water.

Several inquiries into the incident have already been held, but this one is considered particularly significant. It has included three months of public consultation.