§ Mr. Simon HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what checks have been undertaken to establish atmospheric levels of krypton 85 in the vicinity of Sellafield; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. TrippierKrypton 85 is an inert gas and cannot concentrate in the environment. Checks undertaken in the late 1970s demonstrated that levels of krypton 85 in the environment around Sellafield were consistent with those calculated from measured Sellafield discharges using standard aerial dispersion modelling techniques. No further checks have been carried out.
§ Mr. Simon HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what have been the discharge levels of radioactivity to the air in TBq from Sellafield for each year from 1975 to 1989, inclusive.
§ Mr. TrippierData on the radioactive atmospheric discharges from BNFL's Sellafield works are included in my Department's annual "Digest of Environmental Protection and Water Statistics", a copy of which is in the Library of the House. Information for the period 1975–88 is as follows:
Sellafield Aerial Discharges 1975 to 1988 Year Discharges (TBq/Yr) Argon-41 Tritium Kryplon-85 1975 1,110 444 44,400 1976 799 444 44,400 1977 962 296 29,600 1978 1,070 222 25,900 1979 1,150 280 34,800 1980 1,110 252 31,100 1981 1,300 459 51,800 1982 1,320 360 44,000 1983 1,340 268 41,800 1984 1,352 349 37,100 1985 2,800 268 23,800 1986 2,590 171 53,300 1987 2,400 783 34,000 1988 2,420 186 39,700 Other radionuclides, of which carbon-14 is the main component, do not exceed 10 TBq per year.
Information for 1989 is not yet available.