An Icelandic family, who live close to a power station belonging to Reykjavík Energy, are considering taking the company to court after their daughter was diagnosed with leukemia.
Shortly after five-year-old Rósalinda Óskarsdóttir was diagnosed with the illness in June 2008, the parents began to suspect that the nearby power station may have had an effect. Measurements were conducted in their home which showed, in fact, that levels of electromagnetic energy were far above what is considered the safe level. Now the parents are considering suing the power company.
“If my daughter lives to be 25, I want to be able to look her in the face and know that we did everything we could to get justice,” her father told reporters. He added that there are at least two other children that he knows of near the power station who have been diagnosed with leukemia.
Nevertheless, scientific evidence linking electromagnetic radiation and cancer remains uncertain. However, a report in 2001 from the National Radiation Protection Board in the UK showed that there may be a very slight increased risk for leukemia in children.
No comment from Reykjavík Energy has yet been reported.