DEADLY EMISSIONS from teeth fillings of corpses have led to Fife’s two crematoria being upgraded to the tune of £1.2 million.

Special filtering equipment costing £600,000 is to be installed at both Kirkcaldy and Dunfermline crematoria to deal with the large number of Fifers being cremated with fillings made from mercury amalgam, which is toxic to the environment and a major threat to the food chain.

Bereavement services manager Liz Murphy said the changes are being made in line with national air quality legislation.

“The generations of people coming through the crematorium system at the moment have large numbers of these fillings, which mean cremations are set to become the biggest reason for mercury, which can be a lethal substance, in the air,” she said.

After a person is cremated, mercury emissions from their fillings go up into the atmosphere and can be deposited in water, prompting fears it could re-enter the food chain through fish.

The improvements at Fife crematoria have been included in the council’s capital investment plan to comply with national targets.

“Local authorities must reduce these toxic emissions by 50% by 2012 so by upgrading one of our crematoriums by then we will have fulfilled the national requirements,” said Liz.

Kirkcaldy Crematorium will benefit first, with work expected to begin in 2010 and the new filtering system will be installed in Dunfermline in 2012.

“We are not sure yet about how the new system will fit into the existing building in Kirkcaldy,” said Liz. “We might have to build an extension out the back to accommodate it but we will know more in the coming months.”

The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency, which is working with the crematoria sector to meet their targets, say the rise in emissions is due to more people keeping their teeth all their lives.

However they predict that beyond 2020, mercury levels should fall as a result of advances in oral hygiene.