§ Chernobyl Accident
§ Mr. Willie W. Hamiltonasked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many inquiries were made at the special information office set up at his Department following the Chernobyl disaster; and for how long it will continue to operate.
§ Mr. AncramApproximately 6,000 inquiries were received by the Scottish Office public information room, which operated between 6 and 17 May 1986.
§ Mr. Willie W. Hamiltonasked the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) what estimates have been made of the long-term after-effects of the Chernobyl accident on health in Scotland and, in particular, of the effects on deaths through cancer;
(2) what is his policy towards monitoring and countering the effects in Scotland of the fall-out from Chernobyl in the light of the statement by Mr. John Dunster, Chief Executive of the National Radiological Protection Board, that during the next 50 years some people will die of cancer as a result of the disaster; and if he will make a statement.
211W
§ Mr. John MacKayI am aware of the statement made by the chief executive of the National Radiological Protection Board about likely cancer deaths resulting from the Chernobyl incident. As my right hon. Friend said in his reply to the hon. Member for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley (Mr. Foulkes) on 8 May at columns217–19, the Scottish Office responded to the Chernobyl incident by stepping up the level and extent of the monitoring of substances for radioactivity, including air, rainwater, milk and grass; the coverage has since been extended to include milk products, vegetables, meat, poultry and free-range eggs. Detailed results of the monitoring, which will be continued as long as necessary, have been made available to the press.
While it is extremely difficult to predict with any accuracy the extent to which the level of radioisotopes detected might bring about an increase in the annual rate of mortality due to cancer, estimates based on models used by the National Radiological Protection Board and the International Commission for Radiological Protection indicate that the number of fatal cancers expected to occur over the next 35 years will be of the order of 0.02 per 10,000 population. Counter-measures centre on general improvements which are being sought and secured in the early detection and effective treatment of cancers.
§ Mr. Willie W. Hamiltonasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the highest level in becquerels of iodine 131 detected in a litre of milk in Scotland in the aftermath of the Chernobyl disaster; how long that level was maintained; and what is the agreed safety limit.
§ Mr. AncramThe monitoring undertaken in Scotland following the Chernobyl accident included samples of milk from cows, goats and sheep. The highest concentration of iodine 131 detected was 1,460 becquerels per litre in a sample of sheep's milk. Daily sampling showed that iodine 131 levels in milk reached a peak some two to three days after the activity was deposited on pasture and thereafter decreased rapidly.
The lower derived emergency reference level recommended by the National Radiological Protection Board for iodine 131 in cow's milk is 2,000 becquerels per litre. This level, which is set for the protection of very young children, applies also to goat's milk. However for sheep's milk a higher derived emergency reference level of 5,200 becquerels per litre is appropriate because it does not form part of the diet of very young children.
The lower derived emergency reference levels quoted above are the levels at which authorities are recommended to consider the need for action to protect the public. The levels at which such action would become mandatory are some 10 times higher.
§ Mr. Willie W. Hamiltonasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the maximum level of radiation recorded in rainwater immediately after the Chernobyl disaster; and in how many parts of Scotland this maximum was reached.
§ Mr. AncramThe highest concentration of radioactivity in rain water immediately after Chernobyl is set out in the reply given to the hon. Member for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley (Mr. Foulkes) on 21 May 1986 at columns225–26. Concentrations of radioactivity in other samples of rain water were lower than those given in that reply.