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16 Jun 2005 : Column 557W—continued
Endangered Species
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what programmes the Government sponsors to protect and encourage the breeding of endangered species. [4582]
Jim Knight: The Government are taking a wide range of measures to protect and conserve endangered species in this country and also internationally through mechanisms such as international conservation agreements and the Government's funding schemes (for example, the Darwin Initiative and FCO's Sustainable Development Global Opportunities Fund).
More specifically on breeding of endangered species, we are also taking measures. For example, the Royal Botanic Gardens (RBG) Kew, a non-departmental public body sponsored by Defra, carries out much important work, in support of the Convention on Biological Diversity. All living collections held at RBG Kew have undergone a conservation audit so that their endangered state is known and this material is available for propagation and reintroduction. RBG Kew assists governments to identify areas of floristic diversity which should be protected in countries such as Bolivia, Brazil, Madagascar, Cameroon, Thailand and Brunei, and manages the Millennium Seed Bank Project which involves partnerships between 18 countries which seek to collect and conserve long-term, seed from 24,200 species. Seed of 96 per cent. of the seed bearing flora of the British Isles are also held in the Millennium Seed Bank. Seeds of rare and threatened species, such as the Lady's Slipper Orchid, are micro-propagated prior to reintroduction into the wild as part of the national Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP), managed by English Nature and other UK conservation agencies. Collections of rare UK BAP lower plants (bryophytes) are held as a cryo-preserved collection and work is currently under way to develop methods to recover and reintroduce these cryo-preserved collections.
Also, in recognition that zoos can play a role in breeding endangered species for conservation purposes, British zoos are regulated through the Zoo Licensing Act 1981 to require them to participate in conservation measures including captive-breeding programmes for endangered species of animals.
We also provide funds to a number of Darwin Initiative projects which are focused on breeding endangered species in order to contribute to their conservation in the wild. For example, the Initiative has provided three grants to the RSPB and the Institute of Zoology for work to address the catastrophic decline of Vulture species across Asia. This work has identified causes of these declines and set up a captive breeding programme to ensure survival of populations while these causes are being addressed.
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Fly-tipping
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what volume of waste she estimates was illegally fly-tipped in the most recent year for which figures are available, broken down by (a) the nature of the waste and (b) whether it was fly-tipped in urban or rural areas; [4442]
(2) what estimated total volume of waste has been illegally fly-tipped in each year since 1992, broken down by the nature of waste. [4443]
Mr. Bradshaw: Defra has worked with the Environment Agency to establish a national database on fly-tipping (Flycapture) which has been operational since April 2004. No national data were previously available on illegal waste disposal or fly-tipping.
Flycapture is a summary database of fly-tipping incidents and does not record specific volumes. The following data are a summary of incidents reported to the Flycapture system from April 2004 to March 2005 broken down by waste type and location.
Note:
The figures listed in the table are indicative figures from the first year of operation of the database. Data have become more consistent as users have submitted more complete returns. Defra will update its website with more detailed information on the first year's data shortly.
Game Rearing Farms
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many game rearing farms are operating in England. [4521]
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Jim Knight: There are approximately 200 established game farms, who rear and sell in the UK. Approximately a further 200 or so gamekeepers rear birds mainly for their own estates but also sell some to other estates. Finally, a further 1,500 gamekeepers are involved in rearing game birds for release only on their own estates.
I must emphasise that these figures are merely the industry's own best estimate for the UK as a whole. There are no actual statistics held.
GM Crops
Peter Law: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with the Welsh Assembly Government on the planting of GM crops in Wales. [4038]
Mr. Morley: Defra keeps in regular touch with the Welsh Assembly Government on GM crop issues. This covers any applications for approval to cultivate GM crops under the EU legislative process, and the development of policy on the co-existence of GM and non-GM crops. Co-existence is a devolved matter but Defra and the devolved administrations are sharing information and ideas on possible ways forward.
Hazardous Waste
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of (a) the tonnage and (b) types of hazardous waste that will need to be treated to comply with the hazardous waste acceptance criteria coming into force on 16 July. [3452]
Mr. Bradshaw: The tonnage requiring treatment will depend on a number of factors, not least the amount arising. In 2003, some 4.8 million tonnes of special waste was consigned, and 47 per cent. was specifically consigned to treatment facilities (including recycling and reuse), 38 per cent. to landfill and 4 per cent. to incineration. Early indications suggest that arisings of hazardous waste for 2004 have declined further, though fully quality assured data will be available late in the summer.
Estimates on available capacity of hazardous waste treatment infrastructure were prepared for the Hazardous Waste Forum and posted on the Forum's website: http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/hazforum/statusreport.htm
Government and the Environment Agency are working closely with hazardous waste producers in the Landfill Regulation Group to assess how far treatment exists for specific waste streams in order that they may meet the waste acceptance criteria. The waste streams being considered in detail include battery recycling slag, spent pot linings and plasterboard.
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the application of hazardous waste acceptance criteria coming into force on 16 July. [3453]
Mr. Bradshaw:
The Government have transposed the requirements of Council Decision 2003/33/EC establishing the criteria and procedures for the acceptance of waste at landfills in the Landfill (England
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and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2004, SI 2004 No.1375. The Regulations will apply from 16 July 2005. A copy of the Regulations can be obtained from the Office of Public Sector Information at http://www.opsi.gov.uk/.
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) which hazardous waste treatment facilities operating in England are able to treat hazardous waste to comply with the hazardous waste acceptance criteria; what their capacity is; and where they are located; [3454]
(2) what types of hazardous waste cannot be treated in the UK to comply with the hazardous waste acceptance criteria coming into force on 16 July; what the estimated quantities of such waste are; and when the technology required to treat this waste is expected to be operational. [3455]
Mr. Bradshaw: Almost all hazardous wastes can be treated in order to comply with the landfill waste acceptance criteria. Those that cannot may generally be treated by other technologies (which may themselves produce residues suitable for landfill) such as high temperature incineration.
Through its Landfill Regulation Group, the Environment Agency is working closely with industry and Government to identify problematic waste streams and their quantities to eliminate or mitigate any potential issues that could arise. This is being monitored by the Hazardous Waste Forum. Decisions on what if any additional technologies may be required are matters for commercial operators and subject to gaining the usual permissions for land use and environmental protection.
The Environment Agency intends to supplement its Enforcement and Prosecution Policy with an enforcement position in respect of any hazardous waste that is not capable of meeting the Waste Acceptance Criteria on 16 July 2005 for which no alternative recovery or disposal routes are available.
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many pollution prevention control permits the Environment Agency granted for hazardous waste treatment plants in (a) 2000, (b) 2001, (c) 2002, (d) 2003, (e) 2004 and (f) 2005 to date; to which plants; and what the capacity and location of each plant is. [3456]
Mr. Bradshaw: The following table gives the number of permits for hazardous waste treatment plants issued by the Environment Agency under the Pollution and Prevention and Control (England and Wales) 2000 Regulations for the years 2000–05 to date.
| Number of permits issued | |
|---|---|
| 2005 to date | 2 |
| 2004 | 3 |
| 2003 | 5 |
| 2002 | 2 |
| 2001 | 1 |
| 2000 | 0 |
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More detailed information, giving details of the capacity and location for each of these plants is given in the table.
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It should be noted that the capacity for four plants is given as >10 tonnes day. This is because this information is currently unavailable but I will write to the hon. Gentlemen when my officials have completed their investigations.
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps (a) her Department and (b) the Environment Agency have taken to raise awareness amongst producers of hazardous waste of the hazardous waste acceptance criteria that will be in force from 16th July 2005. [3457]
Mr. Bradshaw: The Government and the Environment Agency have undertaken the following actions, many of which were of joint collaboration:
conducted seven rounds of public consultation on aspects of the Landfill Directive, two of which dealt specifically with waste acceptance criteria;
set up the Hazardous Waste Forum in December 2002 to bring together key stakeholders to advise on the way forward on the management of hazardous waste;
formed the Landfill Directive Implementation Group in March 2003. The Group provided stakeholder input into the process and negotiations in Europe that developed Council Decision 2003/33/EC establishing waste acceptance criteria and procedures;
established the Landfill and Hazardous Waste Implementation Programme (LHIP) in April 2004 to drive the changes required to successfully implement landfill and hazardous waste legislation;
set up a Communications Group for LHIP with strategic communication campaigns in place. This Group involves Defra, Environment Agency, DTI, Small Business Services, Envirowise, Environmental Services Association and Chartered Institution of Waste Management (CIWM);
set up a specialist website (www.hazardouswaste.org.uk) to provide information about landfill and hazardous waste changes;
produced leaflets and reports for distribution to waste producers to ensure they are aware of the changes;
organised two WAG seminars. The first on 6 December 2004 to continue to promote understanding of the implications in implementing WAC and to assist industries in preparations for it. The second seminar on 15 April 2005 provided a further opportunity for Government, waste managers, waste producers, regulators and policy makers, to catch up on what progress had been made towards meeting WAC;
Ministers, Government and Environment Agency officials have also spoken at many landfill and hazardous waste related events, some of which were organised by industry groups, such as ESA;
organised a series of hazardous waste road shows aimed specifically at SMEs which took place in Manchester, Bristol, Birmingham and London during April and May 2005;
produced an interpretative note (published in September 2004, available from www.defra.gov.uk) on the Landfill Regulations which cover many aspects of the Regulations, including on WAC, to help industry understand the Government's view on what the Regulations mean in practice;
the Environment Agency has published a regulatory guidance note on WAC, available on the Agency's website at www.environment-agency.gov.uk;
the Environment Agency set up a Landfill Regulation Group in April 2005 to develop a common understanding on the way forward for landfill and to act as a forward-looking forum concentrating on practical implementation of the Landfill Regulations and the impact on waste industry and the Environment Agency.
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what estimate her Department has made of the tonnage of hazardous waste that has been fly-tipped since 16 July 2004; [3458]
(2) how many incidents of fly-tipping of hazardous waste the Environment Agency's Flycapture data collection system has recorded since 16 July 2004; [3459]
(3) what estimate she has made of the tonnage of hazardous waste fly-tipped on private land since 16 July 2004 which has not been recorded by the Environment Agency's Flycapture data system. [3461]
Mr. Bradshaw: The national Flycapture database, established in April 2004, collates summary data of incidents of fly-tipping dealt with by waste collection authorities and the Environment Agency.
Flycapture does not record data specifically on hazardous fly-tips as it is broken down by other waste types. The system does not record specific tonnages. No national data are collected on tonnages of illegally dumped hazardous waste on private land.
Overall, the Environment Agency report that there has been no significant increase in fly-tipping of hazardous waste since July 2004, although there have been incidents of fly-tipping of asbestos in two regions, and these have been followed up as appropriate.
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The following table sets out the number of reported incidents dealt with by waste collection authorities and the Environment Agency in England for each month from July 2004 to April 2005, as recorded on Flycapture.
Note:
Hazardous waste is not a specified waste type within Flycapture so the figures provided indicate those waste streams which may include hazardous waste. It is also important to note that Flycapture is a relatively new system and data returns have been increasing as usage of the system improves.
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