HL Deb 26 May 1993 vol 546 cc274-6

2.38 p.m.

Lord Campbell of Croy asked Her Majesty's Government:

What is their estimate of the quantity of waste oil discharged in the North Sea by vessels flushing or emptying tanks or bilges in 1992.

Viscount Goschen

My Lords, it is generally agreed that the quantity of oil legally discharged each year is from 1,000 to 2,000 tonnes. For illegal discharges the only measure is the number observed and reported spills and there is no technique which will accurately determine the total quantity of oil in a slick of known area. In 1992 the aerial surveillance programme of the Bonn Agreement reported 723 slicks in the North Sea.

Lord Campbell of Croy

My Lords, I am grateful to my noble friend for his reply even though he indicates that accuracy is not possible. Do the figures indicate any improvement upon recent years? Also, if deliberate discharges are internationally regarded as offences, what measures are available now against offenders?

Viscount Goschen

My Lords, there is a general consensus that oil discharged illegally from shipping has remained fairly constant over the past five years at between 1,000 and 2,000 tonnes per year, although that will be reduced under the new regulations. The detection and prosecution of perpetrators of illegal discharges is extremely difficult. If an illegal discharge is identified and the vessel is in UK territorial waters, it can be prosecuted and, if appropriate, the vessel detained.

Baroness Hilton of Eggardon

My Lords, will the Government support the provision of recycling facilities at ports to prevent ships flushing their tanks at sea?

Viscount Goschen

My Lords, the Department of Transport recently conducted a survey on reception facilities for oil and, indeed, garbage from ships. The results show that the facilities available in UK ports range from acceptable to good. The same is true of European ports. The department has arrangements in place which will enable ship masters to report on the lack of adequate reception facilities for oil and garbage.

Earl Grey

My Lords, is the Minister aware that the port of Rotterdam operates a green-star system for ships that have a good record in handling and disposing of waste at sea and that this can save thousands of pounds on each visit? Have the Government any similar, comparable system in mind that they think is worth operating?

Viscount Goschen

My Lords, I have already given details of the Government's and the department's attitude and policy as regards reception facilities for oil at ports in the United Kingdom. The Government are most concerned about the other issue; namely, illegal discharges from ships that continue to contribute to the pollution of the North Sea and other waters.

Lord Monkswell

My Lords, can the noble Viscount confirm that defence-related surveillance facilities enable the vessels discharging oil into the North Sea to be identified and tracked? Further, will the Government undertake to ensure that the information obtained by such surveillance facilities is placed in the public domain?

Viscount Goschen

My Lords, aerial surveillance techniques continue to improve. The subject is being discussed this week at a meeting of experts from contracting parties to the Bonn Agreement. Among other things, they will be considering whether a methodology for estimating a quantity from all remote sensing flights can be agreed.

Lord Clinton-Davis

My Lords, does the Minister agree that, deplorable though acts of deliberate pollution are—and despite the fact that it is extremely difficult to trace the masters who are responsible for them—something like 85 per cent. to 90 per cent. of maritime pollution comes from land-based sources? Does he further agree that a significant proportion of that pollution comes from used car sump oil which a number of people unwittingly pour down the drain and which eventually flows into the sea? Can the Minister indicate whether the Government are taking any steps to encourage the safe disposal of oily wastes in order to help solve the problem?

Viscount Goschen

My Lords, I agree with the noble Lord, Lord Clinton-Davis, that ships are not the only source of oil pollution. Indeed, oil can come from rivers, from off-shore oil installations and from natural seeps. One estimate of the annual input into the North Sea is from between 71,000 tonnes to 150,000 tonnes.