§ Mr. AllenTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what are the duties of Railtrack in respect of fly tipping on its land; and if he will make a statement. [39814]
§ Mr. WattsThe Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978 and the Environmental Protection Act 1990 contain provisions to control fly-tipping. Railtrack's duties in respect of fly-tipping on its land are no different from any other landowner, in that there is no general obligation to remove fly-tipped material. However, if the nature on location of fly-tipped material posed a risk to the safe operation of the railway or to public health and safety, appropriate measures would be taken by Railtrack.
Regarding the case of litter more generally, we are considering whether an order is needed to clarify duties under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, following transfer to Railtrack of operational railway land. As a
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Road accidents Accidents at sea1 Aircraft crashes in UK airspace Year Killed Injured Killed Injured Killed Injured 1979 6,645 3,357,789 — — 48 36 1980 6,239 329,625 — — 32 44 1981 6,069 326,551 — — 57 73 1982 6,150 336,285 — — 26 28 1983 5,618 310,679 — — 71 37 1984 5,788 327,276 — — 41 44 1985 5,342 320,819 — — 77 111 1986 5,618 325,275 — — 69 59 1987 5,339 316,070 — — 49 27 1988 5,230 328,042 — — 286 58 1989 5,554 347,649 — — 72 130 1990 5,402 347,500 — — 42 101 contractual matter, station leases granted by Railtrack already include a provision requiring the train operators to clean the stations for which they are responsible.