§ Mr. Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Portsmouth, South (Mr. Hancock), of 5 February 2001,Official Report, column 358W, what steps have been taken to recover the depleted uranium munitions test-fired into the Adriatic Sea. [149649]
§ Mr. SpellarThe Royal Navy uses depleted uranium (DU) in its Phalanx close-in weapon systems fitted to some ships for anti-missile and aircraft defence. Each round contains only a small quantity of DU. We know from our monitoring of substantial quantities of DU fired into the Solway Firth over many years that this has no detectable impact on uranium levels in sediment or marine life. There are significant amounts of natural uranium in seawater, and the firing of a few Phalanx rounds containing small quantities of DU will have minimal impact on the marine environment of the Adriatic.