The Department of Defence is “actively considering” a major review of all scientific evidence to see whether exposure to toxic jet fuel and other chemicals caused birth defects in the children of military personnel.

In a statement to the ABC, Defence confirmed the prospect of a review, which would examine existing scientific literature on the capacity of fuel to cause foetal abnormalities and reproductive problems.

However, it said it would not conduct its own research.

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The ABC has spoken to a number of former male and female Defence Force personnel who had frequent and prolonged exposure to jet fuel, often with little or no protective equipment, and have subsequently had children with significant medical problems.

Other female members have suffered significant issues with their reproductive systems.

It is understood a number of current female Defence Force personnel have argued forcefully that some investigation needed to be done into whether exposure to jet fuel could cause foetal abnormalities and problems with the reproductive system.

Many male Defence personnel who worked with fuel and other chemicals have also described fathering children with serious medical problems, and have called for Defence to urgently investigate whether their exposure to fuel has caused this.

Defence has refused in the past to investigate whether the children and spouses of people who worked on the F-111 deseal/reseal project suffered adverse health impacts as a result of their work.

Defence warned of risks in 1990s

The ABC reported in April that a study commissioned by Defence into jet fuel exposure found the fuel itself was toxic to the body’s cells, and that the cell damage could be passed on to future generations through a process known as epigenetics.

Also of concern is a substance called fuel system icing inhibitor (FSII), which is routinely added to fuels by Defence. It stops any water present in the fuel from freezing at high altitudes, or in the case of submarines, great depths.

As long ago as 1987, the RAAF acknowledged in safety guidelines that the substance was highly toxic and could enter the body’s bone marrow, and damage the central nervous system and kidneys.

Research carried out on animals also suggested FSII can damage sperm counts and testes, and where the exposure occurs during pregnancy, damage the unborn child.

The 7.30 program reported last month that in the early 1990s, the officer commanding the Army’s petroleum operations unit, Mark McKeon, urged his superiors to improve safety procedures for personnel working with jet fuel, including banning women from working with it, but was ignored.

However, the ABC has been told that in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Defence suddenly stopped women working in jobs where they were directly exposed to jet fuel on the basis of potential harm to the unborn child, and that this was specifically due to concerns about the FSII additive.

Later, this was relaxed to allow women to work with fuel unless they were actively trying to become pregnant, or had returned a positive pregnancy test.

Current Defence workplace health and safety literature, obtained by the ABC, does not refer specifically to the FSII additive or to the possibility of inherited cell damage.

“Defence’s policy is that fuel-handling jobs must be safe for women and for men,” it says.

“Little is known about the biological effect of exposure to chemicals on unborn children; therefore policy is in place to protect women and their unborn babies.”

– ABC