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OSPAR Meeting

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the outcome of the recent OSPAR meeting in Germany; and what the implications are of decisions taken for Sellafield. [123667]

Mr. Morley: I made a written statement on 9 July about the outcome of the OSPAR meeting.

The meeting agreed that the years 1995–2001 would be used to calculate the baselines against which progress in achieving the objectives of the 1998 strategy would be measured. The Ministerial statement agreed at the meeting included the following passage:

"We note the concerns expressed by a number of Contracting Parties about discharges of technetium-99 from Sellafield and their view that these discharges should cease immediately. We welcome the recent initiative of the United Kingdom to request the operator of Sellafield to stop discharges from the MAC treatment process for the next nine months while further research and development of abatement technology is carried out. We look forward to the introduction of such technology to treat remaining MAC if it proves to be technically feasible."

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State wrote to the Chairman of BNFL shortly before the OSPAR meeting. Careful consideration will be given to BNFL's full response when it is received, and to any other representations the Department receives on this issue before any further decisions are taken on the future regulation of technetium-99 discharges from Sellafield.

Recycling

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures she is taking to promote plastic recycling. [124491]

Mr. Morley: The Government have set targets and provided funding for local authorities to ensure they increase their recycling capacity. It is for the local authority to decide which materials to collect.

The Packaging Regulations contain material specific targets, including plastics. The quantity of plastic packaging which is recycled should increase as a result of current negotiations to revise the EU Directive on packaging.

The Government have also established the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) a not-for-profit company, limited by guarantee with the aim of promoting sustainable waste management by creating stable and efficient markets for recycled materials and products, including plastics.

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures she is taking to ensure that local authorities implement and promote doorstep recycling strategies. [124492]

Mr. Morley: The Government have set statutory performance standards (targets) requiring all local authorities to double their recycling, compared with

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1999–2000, by 2003–04 and to trebling their recycling by 2005–06. We have not specified how these targets should be met, however we would expect doorstep collection to play an increasing role in meeting the targets.

The Government have supported the general principle of the Household Waste Recycling Bill introduced by my hon. Friend the Member for Lewisham, Deptford (Joan Ruddock). The Bill addresses the issue of doorstep collection. It provides that where English waste collection authorities have a duty to collect waste they shall ensure, except in some circumstances, that by the end of 2010 they collect at least two recyclates separate from the remainder of the waste.

The Government have also provided local authorities with substantial financial support to enable them to increase their recycling operations. Spending Review 2002 increased provision in the Environmental, Protective and Cultural Services block (which includes waste) by £671 million over the three years to 2005–06. We have also provided additional funding of £140 million for 2002–03 and 2003–04 through the ring-fenced Waste Minimisation and Recycling Fund.

Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the Government's progress in allowing the introduction of home-based waste separation for recycling within the five-year timetable set by the EU. [124437]

Mr. Morley [holding answer 10 July 2003]: Under the revision of the Packaging Waste Directive, the European Parliament recently voted for increased recovery and recycling targets for packaging waste to be met by 2008. The Directive does not specify the method by which these targets should be met. To meet the increased targets greater quantities of packaging waste will have to be collected from the household waste stream. We would expect to see industry working together with compliance schemes and local authorities to ensure that the necessary infrastructure is in place to meet these targets.

Separately, my hon. Friend the Member for Lewisham, Deptford (Joan Ruddock) has introduced the Household Waste Recycling Bill which addresses the issue of doorstep collection. The Government support the general principle of the Bill and it has now completed Committee stage in the Commons. The Bill provides that where English waste collection authorities have a duty to collect waste they shall ensure, except in some circumstances, that by the end of 2010 they collect at least two recyclates separate from the remainder of the waste.

Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what budget has been set aside for the next five years to promote (a) recycling and (b) waste separation in homes. [124438]

Mr. Morley [holding answer 10 July 2003]: The Strategy Unit Report 'Waste Not Want Not' recommended that the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) take forward a programme of public education and awareness, which will include recycling and waste separation. The Government have accepted this recommendation and WRAP is now in the process of drawing up the detailed programme. The

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majority of the resources allocated to the programme, which will amount to £3 million in 2003–04, will support local authority education schemes.

Budgets for the programme will be £10 million and £17 million in 2004–05 and 2005–06 respectively.

Renewable Energy

Mr. Page: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what percentage of biomass suitable for renewable energy generation was sent to landfill in the UK in 2002; and what the figure was for each other EU member; [124560]

(2) what the latest calculation is that she has made of the percentage of biomass containing industrial and municipal waste suitable for renewable energy generation sent to landfill. [124561]

Mr. Morley: We have not made any detailed assessments of quantities of biomass along the lines requested.

This is because the quality of the feedstock used in processes that generate renewable energy from biomass obtained from wastes varies according to the technology employed, and these wastes can also be treated by options not involving energy recovery.

However, current estimates are that nearly 80 per cent. of biodegradable municipal waste goes to landfill.

Rodenticides

Mr. Randall: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action has been taken to assess rodenticides residue in (a) domestic and (b) non-domestic animals customarily eaten by humans and potential implications for public health. [124636]

Mr. Browne: I have been asked to reply.

The Health and Safety Executive has recently taken over responsibility from DEFRA for the registration and assessment of rodenticides under the Control of Pesticides Regulations. All rodenticides are assessed prior to approval been granted to ensure they do not pose an unacceptable risk to man and the wider environment.

Each approval is granted, by Ministers, subject to specific Conditions of Approval, which are legal requirements and must be followed. These conditions are recorded in the approval documents and are reflected on the product label. The label will inform the user what the product has approval for use against, how it must be used to be effective and essential risk and safety advice associated with the product. The directions for use and the precautionary phrases will give the user guidance on how to avoid exposure to domestic and non-domestic animals. When carrying out a treatment the label advice must be followed and the potential risks involved when using a product should be considered.

Following approval of a product, the Approval Holder is under an ongoing responsibility to report adverse data associated with the product to the regulatory authority. Additionally, the Pesticides

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Residues Committee, a sub-committee of the independent Advisory Committee on Pesticides, conduct a ongoing programme of testing to assess the residue levels of pesticides in food stuffs. The Wildlife Incident Investigation Scheme looks at cases where domestic and non-domestic animals have been poisoned by pesticides. Information gathered from these monitoring processes are fed back into the approvals process and, if appropriate, action can be taken against products.

Rural Transport Partnership

Mrs. Shephard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much funding has been allocated (a) by the Countryside Agency and (b) from other sources for new Rural Transport Partnership projects for the financial year 2003–04; and whether these allocations vary from sums previously announced. [125857]

Alun Michael: A total of £12.3 million has been allocated by the Countryside Agency to the Rural Transport Partnership scheme in 2003–04.

The Rural Transport Partnership grant scheme is run by the Agency on behalf of Defra and provides funding to Rural Transport Partnerships to help develop local transport schemes on a match funding basis.

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