§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what information he has received on the effects of radioactive contamination from Chernobyl upon soil bacteria(a) in the immediate exclusion zone around Chernobyl and (b) elsewhere; and whether his Department has made any scientific study of the effects of radioactive materials on soil bacteria.
§ Mr. TrippierA study of the interactions between soil components and radionuclides forms part of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food research programme. My Department has not commissioned any research of this nature.