§ Viscount HANWORTHMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
§ The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, in view of the need to conserve energy and of the damage to the environment which can be caused by the indiscriminate dumping of used engine oil, they will take action to recover such oil for recycling or for use as a fuel oil.
§ The PARLIAMENTARY UNDER-SECRETARY of STATE, DEPARTMENT of the ENVIRONMENT (Baroness Birk)My Lords, a considerable amount of recycling and re-use of waste oils already takes place where it is viable and the Government, with both economic and environmental arguments in mind, are giving further encouragement to this activity. A technical memorandum on the disposal of waste oils now in preparation, and a specific case study soon to be completed for the Waste Management Advisory Council, will explore further possibilities.
§ Viscount HANWORTHMy Lords, will the Government accept that it is always difficult to start off these schemes, and that they may not initially be economic? Also, do the Government realise that there is considerably greater recycling and re-use of oil in Western Germany, and that at present only about half the potential is being used here?
§ Baroness BIRKMy Lords, the answer to the first part of the noble Viscount's supplementary question, on the economic aspect, is "Yes". The rest of it really concerns which oil he is referring to. Some 600,000 tons of spent lubricating 894 oils arise annually in this country, and about two-thirds is technically reclaimable as lubricants or fuel. Different considerations apply to different types of oil.