HC Deb 12 June 1997 vol 295 cc539-41W
Mrs. Helen Jackson

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the locations and number per location of BSE diagnosed cattle landfill in Britain. [612]

Mr. Rooker

[holding answer 21 May 1997]: The Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee (SEAC), which advises Ministers on BSE, considered the issue of BSE and the environment in May last year, including the past disposal of the carcases of cattle affected, or suspected of being affected, with BSE to landfill sites. It considered that although the spongiform encephalopathy agent was not yet fully characterised, there was good evidence to believe that individual molecules were not infectious and that infectivity was associated with macro molecular agglomerations indeed possibly with tissue fragments, albeit small ones. On this basis it concluded it was unlikely that leachate from landfill sites would present a significant risk and there was certainly no justification for taking heroic measures to excavate sites, even those which had previously been used for material such as BSE-confirmed cattle".

The Environment Agencies took over responsibility for the safe regulation of landfill sites in April 1996, and under Part II of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 they monitor ground and surface water quality in the vicinity of licensed landfill sites to check for leachate contamination. The Agencies have carried out a qualitative assessment of all the sites concerned taking into account the number of carcases buried, the degree of containment and the proximity of water sources. They have also carried out a further more detailed quantitative assessment of a selection of sites which were judged from the qualitative assessment to be typical of those sites that appeared to be most vulnerable. The results show that potential risks to be very low, less than one in a million years.

The conclusions of the assessment are in line with the advice previously given to Ministers by SEAC. The Committee has been given the opportunity to comment on the quantitative assessment and has given it its endorsement. The Environment Agencies are now considering how best to publish the report, and related work, and aim to do so shortly.

A list of the locations of the sites concerned and numbers per location is below. No BSE suspects have been disposed of by landfilling since 1991, when sufficient carcase incineration capacity came on stream to process the number of cases that were coming forward:

Number of BSE suspects carcases disposed of Site County Comment
1001–1200 Everleigh Tip, Everleigh, Pewsey Wiltshire Closed
501–1000 Stoney Hill Landfill, Horsehay, Telford Shropshire Closed
401–500 Hill and Moor Landfill Site, Pershore Hereford and Worcester

Number of BSE suspects carcases disposed of Site County Comment
201–400 Wardle Landfill Site, Wardle, Nr. Nantwich Cheshire Closed
Arpley Landfill Site, Arpley, Warrington Cheshire
Whites Pit, Arrowsmith Rd, Poole Attlebridge Dorset Closed
Landfill Site, Attlebridge Welford Quarry Landfill Norfolk
Site, Welford Himley Wood Landfill Site, Lwr Northants
Gornal Staffs
101–200 Jameson Rd Landfill Site, Fleetwood Lancs
Salt Ayre Landfill Site, Lancaster Lancs
Winterton Landfill Site, West Haulton, Scunthorpe Lincs
Rock Cottage Landfill, Ripon North Yorkshire Closed
Gamblethorpe Landfill Site, Newsam Green Rd, Leeds South Yorkshire Closed
51–100 Taddington Landfill Site, Kalton Hill Quarry, Taddington Crich Landfill Site, Crich, Nr Matlock Gainsborough, Lea Rd, Gainsborough Packington Landfill, Little Packington, Meriden
21–50 Butchersfield Landfill Site, Rixton, Warrington Cheshire
Blooming Heather, Broughton Moor Cumbria Closed
Clifton Marsh, Freckleton Lancashire
Rowley Landfill Site, Queen Park Road, Burnley Lancashire
Bramford Landfill Site, Ipswich Suffolk Closed
Lackford Hall Heath, Lackford, Bury St, Edmunds Suffolk
Ryton Landfill, Ryton-on-Dunsmore Warwickshire Closed
Darrington Quarry, Darrington Leys, Knottingly North Yorkshire
Mickleby Landfill, Near Whitby North Yorkshire
11–20 Stretton Sugwas, Worcester Hereford and Worcester Closed
Whinney Hill, Accrington Lancashire
South Thoresby, Near Alford Lincolnshire Closed
Kirby-on-Bain, Tattershall Road, Kirkby-on-Bain Lincolnshire
Leadenham Quarry, Portergate Road, Leadenham Lincolnshire
Ingham, Thetford Road, Ingham, Bury St.Edmunds Suffolk Closed

Number of BSE suspects carcases disposed of Site County Comment
11–20 cont. Seamer Carr Landfill Site, Seamer North Yorkshire
6–10 Pluckley Landfill Site, Pluckley, Ashford Kent Closed
Kenwick Landfill Site, Kennick Quarry, Louth Lincolnshire
Seghill, Northumberland Northumbria
Barnstone Landfill Site, Nottinghamshire
Works Lane, Lanham
Jeniva Landfill Site Hawton, Newark Nottingham-shire Closed
Dimmer Landfill Site, Castle Cary Somerset Closed
Wetherden Landfill Site, Stowmarket Suffolk
Beddingham Landfill Site, Lewes East Sussex
1–5 Nantycaws Refuse Tip Carmarthenshire
Stoneyfield, Invergordon Highland Closed
Middleton, Forss, Thurso Highland Closed
Castletown Tip, Castletown, Thurso Highland Closed
Holiday Moss, Rainford, Merseyside Lancashire
Morley Greaseworks Site, Dewsbury Road Leeds Closed
Nettleton, Woods Hill, Nettleton Lincolnshire Closed
Stainby, Crabtree Road, Stainby, Grantham Lincolnshire
Boston, Slippery Gowt, Wyberton, Boston Lincolnshire
North Forr, Crieff Perthshire Closed
Bryn Posteg Landfill Site, Llannidloes Powys
Acton Landfill Site, Bears Pit, Sudbury Suffolk Closed
Burton Farm Landfill Warwickshire Closed
Site, Bishopton, Stratford-on-Avon
Lower Spen Valley, Dewsbury West Yorkshire
Sugden End Landfill, Crossroads, Keighley West Yorkshire
Shroggs Landfill Site, Wheatley, Halifax West Yorkshire Closed
Wilson Road Landfill Site, Lowmoor, Bradford West Yorkshire Closed