ALLOTMENT holders at the centre of a storm over a toxic ash scare have been offered a payout of £25,000.
Newcastle City Council made the ex gratia offer at a meeting attended by hundreds of plot holders affected by contamination from the Byker incinerator in the city.
The cash is intended to compensate gardeners for disturbance caused when hundreds of tonnes of ash were removed after the ash was found to contain dioxins.
Dr Tricia Cresswell, of Newcastle and North Tyneside Health Authority, said although "worryingly" high levels of lead had been found.
But the levels of dioxins, which are linked to cancers were "not alarming".
A meeting of residents was told the latest investigation included the results of tests on soil and eggs from chickens.
The results on vegetables will be available in three to four months.
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