§ Mr. AshbyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how much land in the United Kingdom is currently being used for the opencast extraction of coal, clay or other minerals; how much has been used and is currently unrestored to its former condition; and whether he will make a statement on Government policy in respect of unrestored land.
§ Mr. ChopeSurveys of mineral workings carried out by local authorities on behalf of the Department of the Environment and the Welsh Office in 1982 indicated that 115,000 hectares of land in England and Wales had permissions for surface mineral workings. Within this, 61,500 hectares were or had been in use as mineral working 723W sites. Fifty-six per cent. of these workings had satisfactory reclamation conditions and 44 per cent. had either no conditions or unsatisfactory conditions. There are no comparable figures available for Scotland. Local authorities carried out further surveys in England and Wales during 1988, and the Department will be publishing the results of these for England later this year.
The Government policy in respect of unrestored land associated with minerals being worked under planning control is to ensure that land taken for mineral operations is restored after working has come to an end. The 1981 Minerals Act imposes a duty on mineral planning authorities to undertake a periodic review of mineral sites and empowers them to make orders to restore and improve the environment of sites which do not have adequate conditions. Derelict workings can also be eligible for derelict land grant to achieve reclamation.