§ Mr. FearnTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what new measures he proposes to improve the monitoring of discharges into the Irish Sea from the United Kingdom's nuclear facilities. [47695]
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§ Angela EagleRadioactive discharges from UK nuclear sites are subject to rigorous and stringent monitoring requirements under the Radioactive Substances Act 1993. Nuclear site operators must take and analyse samples of effluent for radioactivity.
The Environment Agency and the Scottish Environment Protection Action (SEPA) take independent samples for analysis as a check. The operators' results and those of the environment agencies are made available to the public.
In addition, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF) has carried out extensive monitoring of the marine environment since the early 1960s and each year the monitoring programme is scrutinised to ensure that it is effectively targeted. Monitoring methodology is constantly reviewed, so that the most appropriate techniques are used. Research work is also carried out into the various chemical and physical processes that affect the pathways of radioactivity back to man.
A summary of the main findings of the Environment Agency's monitoring programmes is published annually in a report called Radioactivity in the Environment. The last report published covered the year 1996. The results of the radioactivity monitoring programmes undertaken by MAFF and SEPA are published jointly in a report called Radioactivity in Food and the Environment. The last report published covered the year 1996. Copies of both reports can be found in the Library of the House.