HC Deb 17 December 2003 vol 415 cc905-6W
Mrs. Helen Clark

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether the pollutant which caused the pollution incident on the River Nene earlier this year has been identified; what levels of the pollutant are still present; how much of the pollutant was discharged; whether the polluter has been identified; and what action is being taken. [143260]

Mr. Morley

The Environment Agency (the Agency) has not identified the pollutant that caused this incident. Unusually in this case no immediate impact, such as fish mortality, was observed and the effects of the pollutant were identified following routine monitoring of the River Nene by the Agency in May of this year. This makes it likely that considerable time elapsed between biologically active genome of bacteriophage phi X174 in the reduction in the toxic impact of radioactive waste.[142922]

Mr. Morley

No research has been commissioned or assessed by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs into the role of the synthesis of the biologically active genome bacteriophage phi X174 in the reduction of the toxic impact of radioactive waste.

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