§ 9. Mr. Frank Allaunasked the Parliamentary Secretary for Science if he will make a statement about the concentration of strontium in the current fall-out over Great Britain from nuclear test explosions.
§ Mr. Denzil FreethInformation about Strontium 90 in fall-out is published regularly in the series of monitoring reports. Present indications are that the fall-out from all nuclear tests so far carried out is unlikely to result in an accumulation of Strontium 90 in human bone amounting to more than a small fraction of the maximum permissible level as advised by the Medical Research Council.
§ Mr. AllaunSince the Atomic Energy Authority is now publishing valuable weekly reports about the radioactivity level, may I ask whether it is not important that it should also report the more significant figures of strontium content?
§ Mr. FreethYes, Sir, but this cannot be done as quickly as with the weekly report where the figures can be brought out very soon after the collection of the relevant data. I am happy to tell the hon. Member that for the fourth week of May the total gross radioactivity in the air fell again for the third week running.
§ Mr. AllaunWhy should there be greater difficulty in producing these figures?
§ Mr. FreethBecause of the technical difficulties in dealing with the presence in much greater quantities of another isotope of the element, namely, Strontium 89, which is chemically indistinguishable. Indirect methods of identifying and determining the Strontium 90 content have therefore to be adopted, 952 and this takes time. I have had a look at this and I am sure that it cannot be done quicker.