§ Sue DoughtyTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the level of dioxin emissions from the cement industry was(a) in 1997 and (b) in 2001; what assessment (i) her Department and (ii) the Environment Agency has conducted of the reasons for changes in the level of emissions; and if she will make a statement on the safety of these emissions. [122758]
§ Mr. BradshawThe National Air Emission Inventory (`NAEI') estimated emissions of dioxins produced by cement kilns as 2.829 and 5.684 grams in 1997 and 2001 respectively.
Measurements of dioxins are subject to an uncertainty of up to 100 per cent. because of the complex nature of the sampling and analysis techniques and the very low levels of emissions being monitored. The amount of cement production is not the same every year and this will also affect the figures for dioxins. As a result the numerical difference may have no statistical 151W significance. The Environment Agency is at present investigating better techniques for dioxin analysis to secure more accurate reporting of dioxins data.
The Environment Agency has recently taken regulatory action to decrease dioxin levels, in particular at a single cement kiln site where a reduction from 2.2 grams in 2001 to 0.3 grams in 2002 is anticipated. The Environment Agency's own provisional estimate for 2002 is 1.5 grams of dioxins.
European and domestic environmental regulations require that emissions limits for dioxins are set for cement production activities. The limits will reflect the benchmark values suggested by the European Commission and technical guidance produced by the Environment Agency. While excessive exposure to dioxins may be detrimental to human health, the Environment Agency aims to ensure that environmental exposures are too low for this to occur.