§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list all the uniform emission standards presently in place for all the pollutants controlled in all the rivers and estuaries under United Kingdom jurisdiction entering the North sea.
§ Mr. MoynihanThe United Kingdom does not generally set uniform emission standards for discharges of particular substances. Under the present pollution control system for water in this country, the levels of a substance permitted in discharges may vary according to the nature and use of the receiving water, the degree of dilution available and the number of other inputs affecting the water. However, the Government have announced that they intend to introduce a requirement to use the best available technology not entailing excessive cost in relation to significant discharges of the most dangerous substances, and this would be reflected in emission standards for discharges of such substances.
§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list all the environmental quality standards presently in place for all the pollutants controlled in all the rivers and estuaries under United Kingdom jurisdiction entering the North sea.
§ Mr. MoynihanThe following national environmental quality standards in microgrammes per litre have been set for the individual substances listed below in all United Kingdom waters:
- Mercury (rivers): 1.0, (estuaries): 0.5
- Cadmium (rivers): 5.0, (estuaries): 5.0
- Hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) (rivers): 0.1, (estuaries): 0.02
Lead; Chromium; Zinc; Copper; Nickel; Arsenic—The ranges of environmental quality standards for these substances are set out in Appendix 2 of Department of the Environment Circular 18/85, a copy of which is available in the Library.
National quality standards for a number of additional substances will be set in the near future.
In addition, quality standards for a range of substances and other parameters apply to waters specifically designated under or falling within the scope of the following EC directives:
- 76/160/EEC concerning the quality of bathing water,
- 78/659/EEC on the quality of fresh water needing protection or improvement in order to support fish life,
- 79/923/EEC on the quality required of shellfish waters,
301 - 75/440/EEC concerning the quality required of surface water intended for the abstraction of drinking water in the Member States.
The quality standards applied to these waters are those set down in the directives, copies of which are available in the Library.
Water authorities may also in some cases set local quality standards where national standards are not currently in place.
§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the key industrial and other sectors where he intends to achieve a reduction in aerial emissions using strict emission standards, if practicable, within the next four years; and how large a reduction he hopes to achieve.
§ Mr. MoynihanControl over atmospheric emissions is effected by applying emission standards and by other mechanisms. Standards apply primarily to emissions from those industrial processes controlled by Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution (mainly in the fuel and power industry, production and processing of metals, non-metallic mineral production, and the chemical manufacturing industry) and to emissions from vehicles. gnhe extent to which emission standards will bring about reductions in aerial emissions of a wide range of pollutants over the next four years will depend on many different factors, but new standards for power station and vehicle emissions will result in substantial long-term reductions in air pollution.
§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what improvements are necessary in the scientific base and monitoring data, which exist for the North sea, to allow a more thorough assessment of its condition.
§ Mr. MoynihanImprovements in the scientific base and monitoring of data were among the issues discussed at the second international conference for the protection of the North sea, and some of the areas where improvements were felt to be required are set out in annex G to the ministerial declaration, which is available in the Library. The conference also asked the Oslo and Paris commissions and ICES jointly to consider the setting up of a scientific task force to take forward this work and the United Kingdom hosted an inaugural meeting of the task force in March.
§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list the details of the agreed criteria which have to be met to ensure that the knowledge of behaviour of pollutants in the North sea is sufficient to allow these pollutants to be continuously discharged into the North Sea.
§ Mr. MoynihanThe principal criterion governing the issue of discharge consents, whether for discharges to rivers and estuaries or direct to marine waters, is the need to protect the aquatic environment and to safeguard legitimate uses of water. Where environmental quality standards are set for specific substances. These are derived from the available date about the ecotoxicological effects of the substance of sensitive species, with a suitable safety factor built in. Regular monitoring also takes place to assess the effects of discharges. A major research programme is being undertaken by the United Kingdom and other countries bordering the North sea to add to our knowledge about the behaviour and impact of potential pollutants in the North sea.
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§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what action he is taking to reduce the quantity of substances that are persistent and toxic from reaching the North sea; what reduction he expects to achieve by 1995; and if he will make a statement;
(2) if he will detail the measures taken to reduce the inputs into the North sea of (a) mercury, (b) cadmium, (c) carbon tetrachlorides, (d) organic compounds, (e) pentachlorophenol, (f) polychlorinated camphino and (g) drins, wastes from titanitum oxide industry and oil from refineries and reception facilities; what steps will he taken to reduce them further; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MoynihanDischarges to water of these and other substances that are persistent and toxic are already subject to control under part II of the Control of Pollution Act 1974. These controls are operated by the relevant pollution control authorities. In addition, some substances are subject to environmental quality standards laid down in EC directives.
Further action was agreed upon in the declaration following the second international North sea conference which my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State chaired in the United Kingdom last November. The United Kingdom is taking an early lead in the implementation of the declaration. We have opened discussions with the water industry on the measures to be taken in order to achieve a substantial reduction (of the order of 50 per cent.) by 1995, in total inputs to the North sea, of substances that are toxic, persistent and liable to bioaccumulate. Such measures will be applied consistently throughout all United Kingdom coastal waters.
The United Kingdom's reduction programme will forcus on a priority list of the most dangerous substances, selected on the basis of strict scientific criteria, to be termed the red list. Substances on this list will be subject to stringent controls under the new unified approach to the control of dangerous substances which I announced on 18 November. The detailed proposals will be set out in a forthcoming consultation paper.
§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what alternative plans he has for the incineration of waste currently incinerated at sea.
§ Mr. MoynihanThe United Kingdom accounts for a very small proportion of the total waste incinerated in the North sea. In 1986, the last year for which comparable figures are available, the United Kingdom accounted for 3,754 tonnes or about 3.2 per cent. of the total. This amounts to only 5 per cent. of the total waste incinerated on land, but for logistical and local nuisance reasons marine incineration is currently the preferred option for these wastes. As indicated in paragraph 30 of the guidance note on the ministerial declaration following the second international North sea conference, the licensing authorities, advised by Her Majesty's inspectorate of pollution, will seek reductions in the use of this option where practicable and seek to ensure that adequate alternative disposal capacity is available by the end of 1994.
§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he has plans to issue advice on the action required by regulatory authorities and companies to follow up the declaration agreed at the end of the second intergovernmental conference on the North sea.
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§ Mr. MoynihanFollow-up action by regulatory authorities, industrial interests and others to implement the ministerial declaration following the second international conference on the North sea is the subject of a guidance note on the ministerial declaration issued by the Department on 3 February. Copies have been placed in the Library.
§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what information he has as to whether pollution from the United Kingdom has contributed to the ecological deterioration of the Wadden sea; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MoynihanNone of the assessments or models so far used in North sea studies indicate that discharges from United Kingdom rivers are serious factors in the condition of the Wadden sea or other contaminated areas on the eastern side of the North sea. The main sources of pollution of these waters are the major load bearing continental rivers.