§ Baroness Byfordasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many foot and mouth disease pyre sites are being dug up, how many are planned to be dug up; and how many sites have had a risk assessment carried out on them. [HL3248]
125WA
§ Lord WhittyOur records indicate that to date, ash has been removed from 160 pyre sites in England and Wales. In many cases, ash has been removed from the surface of sites. At some locations, the removal operation has involved removing the soil originally placed on top of the trenches to stabilise the sites, followed by the excavation of ash from the pyre trench itself. While this may appear to involve "digging up" the ash, we are not aware of any ash being dug up from sites where ash has been buried in accordance with DEFRA guidelines. A further 11 sites are currently either programmed for removal or are undergoing site specific risk assessments. Risk assessments have been undertaken at all sites where ash removal has taken place.