§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on measures taken to reduce the pollution of drinking water sources from nitrates and pesticides since July 1987.
§ Mr. BaldryGood progress has been made towards reducing pollution from nitrates and pesticides and further action is being planned. The Government have introduced 10 pilot nitrate-sensitive areas and nine pilot nitrate advisory areas in England, and these will provide a practical test of the effectiveness of measures to reduce nitrate leaching. The European Commission has also adopted the urban waste treatment directive and agreed the nitrate directive, which together will control nitrate leaching and the levels of nitrate in sewage discharges across the Community. My Department has set up groups to oversee the implementation of both directives in the United Kingdom.
The advisory committee on pesticides is urgently reviewing the environmental fate and behaviour of atrazine and simazine, the herbicides most frequently found in drinking water. Following this review the Government will consider the options available. In addition, my Department is discussing with major non-agricultural users of pesticides ways of combining effective weed control with minimising the presence of residues in the environment generally and in water in particular.