§ Mr. Laurance Reedasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he is aware that one part D.D.T. in 100,000 478W million parts of salt water can kill marine life; and what steps he will take to prevent this chemical reaching the marginal seas around Great Britain.
§ Mr. Anthony StodartI have been asked to reply. Following a recommendation by the Advisory Committee on Pesticides and other Toxic Chemicals in December, 1969, the Government have already arranged for certain uses of D.D.T. for which adequate and less persistent alternatives are available to be phased out in order to reduce amounts in the environment.
I would refer my hon. Friend to a recent report by the Research Committee on Toxic Chemicals on the effects of D.D.T. on marine life. This summarises the results of research work in the United Kingdom on the effects of insecticides on the marine environment, and states that there is no conclusive evidence of any detrimental effects on marine species in the seas around Britain.