§ Mr. MeacherTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what environmental assessment in respect of contaminated land has been conducted at(a) the chemical defence establishment at Nancekuke in Cornwall, (b) the central dockyard laboratory at HM naval base, Portsmouth and (c) the RAF aeroplane and armaments experimental establishment at Boscombe Down; [3526]
(2) what environmental impact assessment has been conducted in respect of contaminated land at (a) the Admiralty engineering laboratories at (i) Ditton Park and (ii) West Drayton (b) the Admiralty experimental works at Haslar, Gosport, (c) the Admiralty marine engineering establishment at Portland, (d) the Admiralty materials laboratory at Holton Heath, Poole, (e) the Admiralty research laboratories at (i) Perran Porth, Cornwall, (ii) Teddington and (iii) Bushy Park, (1) the Admiralty surface weapons establishments at (i) Ditton Park, (ii) Eastney Portsmouth, (iii) Funtingdon, (iv) London road, Portsmouth, and (v) Portsmouth, Cosham and (g) the Admiralty underwater weapons establishments. [3413]
§ Mr. SoamesMy Department has carried out environmental assessments as appropriate at its sites. As I informed the hon. Member on 15 October,Official Report, column 861, we are introducing a prioritised procedure of land quality assessment for the defence estate, which will provide a publicly available land quality statement for individual sites. However, such documents 220W do not yet exist in respect of these sites, and historic details are not held centrally on work carried out in the past.
§ Mr. MeacherTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will ask his United States counterpart to provide routinely to his Department copies of the environmental compliance assessment and management programme reports for each military facility in the United Kingdom and overseas territories where operating rights have been granted to United States defence forces. [3414]
§ Mr. SoamesMOD personnel are already fully involved in the environmental audit process at US military facilities in the UK and are routinely made aware of the contents of environmental compliance assessment and management programme reports. Similarly FCO personnel are kept fully informed of the environmental impact of all US activities at overseas territories where operating rights have been granted to US forces.