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By David Brough, Reuters

The Rome-based U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (news - web sites) (FAO) said in a new report that the build-up of toxic pesticides that have been banned or expired is dramatically higher than previous estimates of around 100,000 tons.

The report, entitled ``Baseline study on the problem of obsolete pesticide stocks,'' will be discussed at a meeting of international donors in Rome on Thursday and Friday.

According to FAO, the quantities of these obsolete pesticides in Africa and the Near East are estimated at over 100,000 tons, in Asia at over 200,000 tons and in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union at more than 200,000 tons. For Latin America FAO is still preparing inventories.

``The lethal legacy of obsolete pesticides is alarming and urgent action is needed to clean up waste dumps,'' said FAO expert Alemayehu Wodageneh. ``These 'forgotten' stocks are not only a hazard to people's health, but they also contaminate natural resources like water and soil,'' he added. ``Leaking pesticides can poison a very large area, making it unfit for crop production.''

The pesticide waste has accumulated over more than 30 years and products are being added continuously, FAO said.

The waste sites contain some of the most dangerous insecticides like the Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) aldrin, chlordane, DDT, dieldrin, endrin and heptachlor that have been banned in most countries, and organophosphates.

Health Risk

As pesticides deteriorate, they form by-products which may be more toxic than the original substance.

In addition to pesticides, waste sites contain contaminated sprayers, empty pesticide containers and huge quantities of heavily polluted soil.

``Many stocks are situated near farm fields and wells in poor rural areas, as well as near houses,food stores and markets in urban areas,'' FAO said. ``The dumps are often abandoned, unmanaged and in very poor condition,'' the organization added.

In many cases, pesticides are left in the open; stores are built in a traditional way, using mud andstraw, with earth floors; metal containers are corroding and toxic substances are leaking into theground.

``Often toxic waste sites are located in the center of villages,'' FAO said. ``There are hardly any security measures. Near stores of abandoned and leaking pesticides, people often prepare food and draw water, children play there and animals graze nearby.''

Although there have been no systematic studies on health effects, local people complain about headaches, nausea and coughing, the world food body said.

Last month, FAO officials accompanied by a Reuters correspondent visited Ethopia, where they found metal drums leaking toxic waste at obsolete pesticide dumps located in residential areas.

Ethiopian and FAO officials said the build-up, dating back 30 or more years, was due to bad management of pesticide deliveries by the government and donors, and unscrupulous marketing by the chemicals industry of pesticides that often were not needed.