HC Deb 31 October 1996 vol 284 cc183-4W
Ms Ruddock

To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) when was the last occasion that a field inspection of an offshore oil or gas installation was undertaken by a Government official in order to confirm the composition of produced water; and if he will list the number of occasions that such inspections have been undertaken in each of the last eight years; [511]

(2) when was the last occasion that a field inspection of an offshore oil or gas installation was undertaken by a Government official in order to confirm the composition of contamination on drill cuttings; and if he will list the number of occasions that such inspections have been undertaken in each of the last eight years. [512]

Mr. Page

[holding answers 30 October 1996]: The last occasion that a field inspection of an offshore oil and gas installation was undertaken by a Government official in order to confirm the composition of produced water was on the 25 of October 1996.

As the hon. Member was advised earlier this year on 3 July, Official Report, column 457, inspections of offshore installations have been undertaken by the Department of Trade and Industry in each of the last eight years, although figures are not available, apart from at disproportionate cost due to the relocation of the office responsible to Aberdeen and the subsequent archiving of files.

Ms Ruddock

To ask the President of the Board of Trade what are the total volumes of unrecovered oil-based drilling muds and of water-based drilling muds that were discharged from offshore oil and gas installations on the UK continental shelf in each of the last eight years. [513]

Mr. Page

[holding answer 30 October 1996]: The total volumes of unrecovered oil-based drilling muds discharged offshore oil and gas installations on the United Kingdom continental shelf for the last eight years are routinely recorded in the "Energy Report", which is published annually and is available in the Library of the House.

There is no statutory record of total water-based drilling mud discharged.