§ Mr. MorganTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what consultations he has had with his counterparts in France, Ireland, Spain and Portugal concerning equivalence of progress on the designation of sites of community interest in the Atlantic biogeographical region, pursuant to article 1(c)(iii) of the EU habitats directive.
§ Mr. AtkinsA meeting attended by representatives of the Commission and relevant member states of the Atlantic biogeographic region to establish a common understanding for the application of the directive to the region and on aspects of implementation was held in Edinburgh from 12 to 14 October. Member states reported their progress on the identification of candidate sites of Community interest. Community-wide discussions on these topics are held at regular meetings of the adaptation committee for the directive, chaired by the Commission.
564WHer Majesty's inspectorate of pollution authorises releases of these substances in different ways depending on the detail of the application for authorisation under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and the local circumstances. Some of these substances are given specific limits, but, in all cases, there is a residual duty under the Act to use best available techniques not entailing excessive cost to prevent the release of all prescribed substances, which include release to air of vanadium, nickel and their compounds, and to render harmless any other substance, which is not prescribed.