HC Deb 22 October 1982 vol 29 cc246-7W
Mrs. Renée Short

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what monitoring takes place of sites on which low and intermediate radioactive waste is dumped.

Mr. Giles Shaw:

Where necessary, monitoring of sites at which disposals of low-level radioactive waste have taken place is carried out either by the Department's radiochemical inspectorate or by the site operator as a condition of the authorisation. In the great majority of cases monitoring is not necessary because the radiological hazards involved in the disposal are negligible. Disposal facilities for "intermediate" radioactive waste as defined in the recent White Paper "Radioactive Waste Management" (Cmnd. 8607) have yet to be constructed, and the monitoring arrangements have not yet been determined.

Mrs. Renée Short

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will ensure that local authorities are in future represented on the Government's radioactive waste management advisory committee.

Mr. Giles Shaw:

When appointments are made to the committee, the hon. Member's suggestion will be borne in mind.

Mrs. Renée Short

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will in future consult local authorities on the question of dumping of radioactive waste to give them the option of public hearings.

Mr. Giles Shaw:

My Department consults local authorities and water authorities about disposals from UKAEA sites and sites licensed under the Nuclear Installations Act 1965 and about all other landfill burials involving special precautions, and thus goes beyond the requirements of the Radioactive Substances Act 1960. The radiochemical inspectorate is always willing to discuss such a case with the local authority, if requested. Other authorisations under the Act are very numerous and of much less significance radiologically, and in such cases consultations would not be justified. Copies of all certificates of authorisation are sent to the relevant local authorities.

The Act makes provision for a formal hearing only where the applicant requests it. However, if a case arose in which no such request was made by the applicant but the circumstances nevertheless seemed to warrant it, the Department would explore the possibility of including a hearing in its consultations.