§ Mr. Barry FieldTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what treaty obligations and resources are available for oil spill control in the Antarctic; and whether Vikoma skimmers and the Frogmat boom have been evaluated in these latitudes.
§ Mr. EggarThere are no specific treaty obligations which require the United Kingdom to clean up oil spills in Antarctica and there are no resources deployed in Antarctica by the United Kingdom for that purpose. The equipment referred to in the question has not, so far as I am aware, been evaluated in Antarctica although boom and skimmer devices were used in connection with the oil spill from the Bahia Paraiso which sank on 31 January.