§ Mr. Laurance Reedasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether the laboratories of his Department will be investigating the biological pathways of heavy metals contained in the 5 million tons of sewage sludge disposed of in the outer Thames Estuary every year.
§ Mr. Laurance Reedasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether the laboratories of his Department will be investigating the pattern of distribution of material dumped in the outer Thames Estuary.
§ Mr. Anthony StodartThe distribution of sludge dumped in this area depends upon the general pattern of water movements; it is clear that the organic materials are very widely dispersed. The possible concentration in marine animals228W of heavy metals derived from the sewage sludge, and the biological pathways involved, are being investigated by my Department's Fisheries Laboratory as quickly as its work programme allows.