HC Deb 26 October 1988 vol 139 cc232-3W
Dr. Thomas

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish in theOfficial Report a list of the organisations to which the "Red List" consultation paper on pollution control for the aquatic environment, published on 28 July has been sent and the full list of 26 substances and their comparative toxicity, persistence and capacity for bio-accumulation.

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

The "Red List" consultation paper was sent to some 250 organisations in the water, environmental, agricultural and industrial sectors as well as other Government Departments and foreign Governments. Since then, approximately 250 other organisations and individuals have been sent copies on request.

The table sets out the comparative toxicity, persistence and capacity for bio-accumulation of the 26 provisional "Red List" substances:

1Acute toxicity Aquatic organisms 2Half life in water 3Bioconcentration factor or octanol water partition coefficient
Chloroform 13.0 1.2 6
Carbon Tetrachloride 27.0 1.2 30
1, 2-Dichloroethane 65.0 1.2 2
Trichlorobenzene 0.45 30 2,800
Azinphosmethyl 0.0001 30 *2.99
Fenitrothion 0.004 30 250
Malathion 0.00076 1.5 *2.89
Endoculfan 0.00009 7.5 1,300
Atrazine 0.6 30 *2.7
Simazine 1.0 25.7 1,800
Dieldrin 0.0005 720 19,000
1 These figures are the lowest acute toxic values found for the substances, in milligrammes per litre. They give an indication of the order of the acute toxicity of the substances under laboratory conditions and may not reflect the substances' toxicity in the water environment.
2 These figures, quoted in days, give an idea of the substances' persistence in water. They are often derived from a number of reports and so constitute the "best single figure estimate".
3 The figures marked * are log octanal/water partition coefficient (Log P) values and have been quoted where there is not a bioconcentration factor available. A Log P of 3 corresponds very roughly to a bioconcentration factor of 1,000.