§ Mr. Stephen Rossasked the Secretary of State for Trade (1) whether he has taken steps to trace the vessel responsible for dumping dangerous items of chemical waste labelled "El Nevado"; and whether he has been able to trace a ship of that name which has been in the English Channel in recent weeks;
(2) what efforts are being made to trace the origin of various dangerous chemicals that have been washed ashore along the South Coast during the past seven days.
§ Mr. EyreThe cannister washed ashore on 12 June at Compton Bay, Isle of Wight, containing anhydrous ammonia, was marked "El Nevado"" and Guayaquil" Inquiries reveal no vessel by the name of "El Nevado". There is a vessel called "Guayaquil", but in the period preceding the 12 June it was off South America, being in Valparaiso on 26 May and Buenos Aires on 8 June. This appears to rule out any involvement by this vessel.
A drum of hydrogen peroxide solution washed ashore on the Isle of Wight on 11 June contained insufficient markings for enquires to be made. Nearly 300 canisters marked BAYER have been recovered from the South Coast recently. They contain Desmodur R or Ru, an adhesive constituent which contains components which could be harmful. Bayer UK Ltd. is co-operating with my Department in an attempt to trace the shipment and to discover how it came to be washed ashore.