HALIFAX (CP) - The widow of a soldier who died from suspected Gulf War syndrome said Thursday that the partners of veterans could be exposed to the effects of depleted uranium through sexual contact. Sue Riordon presented a provincial committee with an anonymous U.S. study indicating five veterans, who had undergone tests for depleted uranium, had the substance in their semen.

The report, sent to Riordon's home in Yarmouth, N.S., is not attributed to any organization and is referred to in several lines as the 'McDiarmid study'.

But Riordon told a Nova Scotia veteran's affairs committee that the questions raised by the study deserve more investigation.

Riordon, whose husband Capt. Terry Riordon died in 1999, said she suffers from a strange array of debilitating illnesses she fears could be linked to the depleted uranium found in Terry's bones.

"Is this what's wrong with my vertebrae? Is this going to kill me?" Riordon said, after her presentation.

"How liable are we to the civilian population if this proves to be 100 per cent correct? That document terrifies me."

The report says that out of 22 veterans tested, five had "detectable levels of DU (depleted uranium) in their semen. An obvious genotoxic hazard with serious implications for fetal health."

Several veterans of the Persian Gulf War have complained of a burning sensation from their semen and health problems suffered by their spouses in the years after they returned home.

One Canadian veteran, who suffered from migraines, insomnia, poor motor skills, loss of memory and painful skin, said last year that his former wife had eight miscarriages after he returned from the Gulf and that doctors had no explanation for the problem.

When the couple eventually did have a child, the baby was five weeks early, suffered from low birth weight and has been plagued with ear infections and other health problems.

Canadian and U.S. studies have never shown any link between the veterans' condition and illnesses afflicting family members, such as chronic fatigue, headaches and vomiting.

There is also no scientific evidence to prove that depleted uranium - used to harden weapons - has caused veterans to become sick.

The committee agreed to have the study received by Riordan reviewed by the Nova Scotia Department of Health.

Riordon, whose weakened condition required her to sit in a chair during interviews, said spouses have not been checked for depleted uranium because they don't have the money for tests at independent laboratories.

The federal government pays for tests for depleted uranium, but many veterans say the procedure is meaningless because it doesn't include a key test that isolates the material.

Riordon also urged the province to force the federal departments of Veterans Affairs and National Defence to cover the veterans' medical costs, rather than have the province pay for them.

She said Ottawa has shuffled its problem on to the provinces by forcing them to pay medical bills and social assistance for veterans who are unable to work or collect enough money through their pensions.

"You are carrying a very large burden to be a federal dumping ground," said Riordon, who heads the Canadian Peacekeeping Veterans Association.

"I don't know why you are accepting federal problems."

Riordon said dozens of veterans from Nova Scotia have had to leave the province to seek treatment and say they are unable to come home because of a lack of services.

There are about 15 veterans from Nova Scotia who have tested positive for depleted uranium, but only nine have stayed here, said Riordon. Many of them are trying to cope with limited pensions of $91 a month, few services, deteriorating health and a government that doesn't acknowledge their illnesses, she said.

The committee said it would draft a letter to Veteran's Affairs and DND, criticizing the treatment of veterans.

"Our government has ultimately let you down," said committee member Russell MacKinnon.