§ Lord Fearnasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many beaches in England and Wales have been affected by oil pollution in the years 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 and in 2004 to date. [HL4563]
§ Lord WhittyThere are many routes through which beaches may be affected by oil pollution and for the majority of cases, statistics for specific causes of oil production are not collected. The Advisory Committee on Protection of the Sea does, however, on behalf of the Marine and Coastguard Agency, publish an annual survey of reported discharges attributed to vessels and offshore oil and gas installations operating in the United Kingdom pollution control zone. Annual surveys for 2000 to 2003 contain the following figures for oil pollution incidents affecting beaches which are attributed to these sources. The figures for 2004 are not yet available. All figures cover the whole of the UK.
Year Number of Beaches 2000 19 2001 14 2002 10 2003 14