HC Deb 29 April 1971 vol 816 c201W
Mr. Laurance Reed

asked the Minister of State for Defence if he will list the different sites within the United Kingdom Continental Shelf areas that have been used as dumping grounds by the Royal Navy since the last war; and if he will name those still used for this purpose.

Mr. Kirk

After the war, the approved ammunition dumping areas on the Con-tinental Shelf around the United Kingdom were:

North Channel:

Beaufort's Dyke.

English Channel:

  1. (a) Hurd Deep.
  2. (b) Portsmouth—St. Catherine's Deep.
  3. (c) Plymouth Spoil Ground.

Bristol Channel:

Milford Haven.

Firth of Forth:

May Island.

Scotland:

Southern end of Loch Linnhe.

Loch Linnhe is no longer in use as a dumping ground. All the others remain approved areas, and their positions are shown on Admiralty charts. In addition, there exist around the United Kingdom coastline a number of spoil grounds primarily for the dumping of dredged waste from harbours: these, too, are marked on Admiralty charts but no ammunition is dumped there, and the dumping of surplus stores has been discontinued.