§ Mr. Home RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what quantity of raw sewage and sewage sludge is discharged into the firth of Forth each year from(a) Fife, (b) Central and (c) Lothian Regions.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonThe quantities of untreated sewage discharged in 1988 were:
- (a) Fife: the information is not available in the form sought. However, 84,000 cu m per day, much of it screened, were discharged into Fife's estuarine and coastal waters.
- (b) Central: 4,800 cu m per day.
- (c) Lothian: the information is not available in the form sought. However, sewage, much of it screened, from a population of approximately 90,000 was discharged into Lothian's estuarine and coastal waters.
Since sewage sludge is a product of the treatment of sewage, there is none arising from the discharges noted above. Sludge generated at treatment works is not discharged to the sea, although 250,000 wet tonnes of sludge from works serving the Edinburgh area is dumped at sites in the outer firth of Forth. This disposal operation takes place in accordance with the terms of a licence issued by the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries for Scotland under the Food and Environment Protection Act.