§ Mr. RuaneTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) if he will meet local hon. Members to discuss the latest BHP oil pollution incident; [76582]
(2) if he will make a statement on the recent oil pollution incident on the beaches of Rhyl and Prestatyn. [76584]
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§ Mr. Battle[holding answer 15 March 1999]: An oil spill was reported from BHP' s Liverpool Bay Development on Saturday 6 March, following which small amounts of oil were deposited on beaches in Rhyll and Prestatyn. BHP has shut down oil and gas production from the development until the cause and circumstances of the incident are identified.
My officials are working with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency in regard to this oil spill. The incident is being investigated by a DTI Inspector, and I will also ensure that an independent assessor conducts a review of the incident. I have told all concerned that I am looking for a thorough but prompt investigation.
I wrote to the local hon. Members for the Vale of Clwyd, for Clwyd, West (Mr. Thomas) and for Delyn (Mr. Hanson) on 9 March informing them of this incident. I stated that I would continue to keep them in touch with developments I would be pleased to meet the hon. Members to discuss this incident.
§ Mr. RuaneTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list all oil pollution incidents in the Irish Sea in the past 10 years, giving the size of the incident, the company responsible and the date. [76583]
§ Mr. Battle[holding answer 15 March 1999]: The information relating to oil pollution incidents from offshore installations in the Irish Sea Basin over the last 10 years is as follows:
Date Operator Amount (tonnes) 1 March 1993 Hamilton 0.01 30 November 1993 British Gas 0.30 6 November 1995 British Gas 4.0 13 November 1995 BHP Petroleum 0.022 21 March 1996 British Gas 0.004 6 July 1996 British Gas 0.070 5 September 1996 British Gas 0.004 15 September 1996 British Gas 0.001 22 September 1996 British Gas 0.500 8 May 1997 British Gas 0.013 2 July 1997 British Gas 0.019 27 January 1998 BHP Petroleum 0.001 24 March 1998 BHP Petroleum 0.500 28 March 1998 British Gas 0.001 24 April 1998 BHP Petroleum 1.000 28 April 1998 BHP Petroleum 0.500 4 May 1998 British Gas 0.0151 12 May 1998 BHP Petroleum 0.500 14 June 1998 BHP Petroleum 46.00 20 June 1998 British Gas 0.0005 7 August 1998 British Gas 0.066 21 October 1998 BHP Petroleum 0.0019 1 November 1998 BHP Petroleum 0.042 29 November 1998 BHP Petroleum 0.001 11 December 1998 BHP Petroleum 0.010 15 December 1998 BHP Petroleum 0.010 6 March 19991 BHP Petroleum 10.83 9 March 1999 BHP Petroleum 0.010 Total 54.4315 1 provisional—investigation ongoing As an approximation 1 tonne = 1.25 cubic metres of oil.
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§ Mr. RuaneTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will review the guidelines relating to oil pollution around the British coast following the new information about the effect of oil pollution of less than one part per billion. [76585]
§ Mr. Battle[holding answer 15 March 1999]: This information comes from studies into the Exxon Valdez oil spillage which occurred in 1989. It will be reviewed and taken into account by my officials and their colleagues in other Government Departments when considering the potential threat of oil spills to fisheries and the marine environment.