§ Mr. BentonTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the stockpiling of brown granular dust from remains of slaughtered cattle in Bootle; what assessment he has made of(a) the dangers to the public health posed by this substance and (b) the conditions of its storage; and if he will make a statement. [21419]
§ Mrs. BrowningMeat and bone meal arising from the rendering of cattle carcases under the over-30-months scheme is being stored at five sites in England pending destruction by the best practicable environmental option. Only healthy cattle can be purchased under the scheme and EC regulation 716/96, under which the scheme operates, expressly prohibits the purchase of cattle affected with or suspected of being affected with BSE. These are destroyed under separate arrangements.
The Government are actively pursuing a number of options for the disposal of meat and bone meal arising from the OTMS. The Intervention Board recently agreed a contract with a high temperature incineration company, Rechem, to burn MBM at its Fawley plant, and has an exercise under way for further incineration facilities from which additional MBM disposal capacity is expected to emerge. Also combustion trials have been carried out at PowerGen's test facilities at Ratcliffe on Soar, Nottinghamshire, and at National Power's test facilities at Didcot, Oxfordshire, to establish the feasibility of burning MBM in power stations. These trials have been monitored by the Environment Agency and the results will be placed on the public register. The test results are being fully evaluated, and full weight will be given to the protection of human health and of the environment before any decisions are reached.
The independent Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee, which advises Ministers on BSE, has concluded that there was no epidemiological evidence to suggest that the handling of MBM presented a risk to any of those engaged in the related trades. The Advisory 960W Committee on Dangerous Pathogens has also considered the health risks associated with the handling of MBM and has issued generic guidance for all occupational groups, including those involved in storage. The Intervention Board executive agency, which has executive responsibility for the day to day running of the scheme, has drawn the guidelines to the attention of storekeepers storing MBM.
The storage of this material as waste is subject to the requirements of part II of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and the Waste Management Licensing Regulations 1994, as amended. With these requirements in view, IBEA ensures that all potential storage sites meet rigorous technical criteria before they are considered suitable for dry storage and are well managed to keep them free of rodents, insect infestation or excessive odour. Where odour problems have arisen, the IBEA has engaged the services of leading experts in odour suppression technology for advice.