Cement company in court for abnormalities in kids

Women in east china's Anhui Province have taken a cement plant near their homes to court, claiming pollution from there caused abnormalities in fetuses and babies.

Tianrui Group opened a cement plant in Xiaoxian County, near Miaojie Village, in November 2010.

Villagers say since then there has been a cluster of cases.

In 2011, villager Zhu Qian had her pregnancy terminated after four months when the fetus was found to be developing abnormally.

The daughter of fellow villager Liang Jiguo died of a heart defect when just 10 days old.

Last September, Wang Yu's 5-month-old grandson was diagnosed with Down syndrome.

A month later, villager Zhang Panhuai had her pregnancy terminated at six months after ultrasound scans showed abnormalities.

Villagers suspect that the women involved were exposed to pollution early in their pregnancies, the Oriental Morning Post reported yesterday.

In mid-March, Wang filed a lawsuit against Tianrui Group that was heard on May 8.

"None of our relatives or ancestors experienced these sort of abnormalities," Wang said.

In court, Tianrui denied causing pollution, presenting officials documents confirming that the plant had passed environmental evaluation.

And Xiaoxian Party chief Long Daojin asked: "How can ash and dust, ... cause defects in babies?"

But the Anhui Research Academy of Environmental Sciences found the plant released sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide.

No verdict was announced.