§ Mr. Allan Rogersasked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the Beryllium dust leak at the royal ordnance factory, Cardiff.
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§ Mr. LeeThere has been no leak of Beryllium from the royal ordnance factory, Cardiff, into the outside environment. However, routine monitoring in a Beryllium workshop revealed that higher than normal levels of airborne Beryllium were present in a small area of the facility on 26 January and some parts of the working area were found to be contaminated by Beryllium powder. Immediate corrective action was taken. The Beryllium facility was closed to normal operations while investigation and decontamination were put in hand. No member of staff has shown symptoms of any harmful effects.
Beryllium is a non-radioactive but toxic material. It is used by ROF Cardiff under procedures designed to ensure that no one is exposed to dangerous levels of Beryllium powder. These procedures reflect the advice of the Health and Safety Executive as well as the Ministry's own expertise in handling the material. The area affected is within a purpose-built, self-contained facility so designed and constructed that it is kept under negative air pressure to prevent leakage to the outside environment. Air is exhausted from the building only after passing through banks of filters. The output is monitored and results for the period in question were not abnormal and were within normal limits. Neither on this nor on any other occasion has Beryllium been emitted to the outside environment in excess of permitted levels.