§ Andrew GeorgeTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment she has made of international agreements on the disposal of radioactive waste at sea; whether these agreements are being renewed; and if it is her policy that they should be reviewed. [28758]
§ Mr. MeacherThe UK is a contracting party to both the OSPAR convention for the protection of the marine environment of the north east Atlantic 1992. and the convention on the prevention of marine pollution by dumping of wastes and other matter 1972 (known as the744W London convention) which applies globally. Both conventions prohibit the disposal at sea of radioactive waste, and we see no need for these provisions to be reviewed. The UK is very active within both conventions in seeking to ensure that environmental protection standards continue to develop in an effective and appropriate way in the light of the latest scientific knowledge.
§ Andrew GeorgeTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what arrangements there are for the(a) concealing and protected disposal of radioactive waste for which the UK Government are responsible and (b) retrieval and protected containment of previously disposed of radioactive waste where it has been necessary to retrieve it. [28756]
§ Mr. MeacherThere are certainly no arrangements to conceal disposals of radioactive waste for which the UK Government are responsible.
The arrangements for disposal of radioactive waste in the UK require that all disposals of civil waste are subject to the provisions of the Radioactive Substances Act 1993, as amended. This Act does not apply to the Ministry of Defence, but its policy is that where practicable it will apply standards at least as stringent as those required by the Act. At present the main UK disposal site is at Drigg in Cumbria; this is authorised to accept only low level waste. The UK environment agencies are the enforcing authorities for the Radioactive Substances Act. The health and safety executive are the enforcing authority for the safety of workers at the Drigg site.
With regard to arrangements for the retrieval of waste already disposed of on land, the Government have accepted a proposal from the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority that it retrieve the waste from the Dounreay shaft and process it to a form suitable either for disposal or any other long-term management option which the Government decide on for intermediate-level waste. Such retrieval will be subject to regulation by the Health and Safety Executive's nuclear installations inspectorate.
The consultation paper "Managing radioactive waste safely" sets out the Government's proposed decision making programme. The consultation period ends on 12 March and we would welcome comments from people all over the UK.
The radioactive waste which was dumped at sea by the UK in the past does not give any cause for concern provided it is left undisturbed. Results obtained under the OECD's co-ordinated research and environmental surveillance programme (CRESP) related to sea disposal of radioactive wastes have demonstrated that the radiological impacts on human and oceanic populations emanating from the north east Atlantic dumpsites are exceedingly small compared to the natural background levels, and are likely to remain so. This view was reiterated in the OSPAR convention's quality status report 2000, copies of which are available in the Library of the House. Any attempt to retrieve such waste would be both unnecessary and potentially hazardous for the personnel involved.
§ Andrew GeorgeTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which(a) national and (b) international regulations and agreements apply to the disposal of UK originated radioactive waste (i) within mainland Britain, (ii) within territorial waters, (iii) outside territorial waters and (iv) in other countries. [28757]
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§ Mr. MeacherWithin mainland Britain and territorial waters, the disposal of radioactive waste is subject to the Radioactive Substances Act 1993. The UK is also subject to the provisions of Directive 96/29/Euratom laying down basic safety standards in the European Union for the protection of the health of workers and the general public against the dangers arising from ionising radiation.
The dumping of radioactive waste at sea is prohibited under the OSPAR convention for the protection of the marine environment of the north east Atlantic 1992, and under the convention on the prevention of marine pollution by dumping of wastes and other matter 1972 (known as the London convention), as amended in 1994, which applies globally. These conventions apply both within and beyond territorial waters, and the UK is a contracting party to both.
The UK does not dispose of radioactive waste in other countries. However, it is Government policy that the wastes resulting from the reprocessing of foreign spent fuel are returned to the country of origin.
Shipments of radioactive waste into, out of, and through the EU are regulated under the 1993 Transfrontier Shipment of Radioactive Waste Regulations (TFSRW). They apply to radioactive waste shipments to or from anywhere in the world.