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21 Apr 2009 : Column 555W—continued
The combined annual savings resulting from these actions was 4.2 MtCO2 per annum by 2020 for commercial and street lighting, and 4.6 MtCO2 per annum in 2020 for domestic applications.
Through a regulation under the Framework Directive for the Eco-design of Energy-using Products (EuP), to be formally adopted in April 2009, inefficient incandescent lamps for household use will be taken off the market in stages between September 2009 and 2012. Analysis based on MTP modelling indicates that this action will result in savings of over 1 million tonnes of CO2 per annum by 2020 on top of the measures already in place.
A separate, recently-adopted regulation on tertiary lighting under the EuP Framework which, by removing the least efficient office and street lighting products from the market, will deliver a further 1 million tonnes of CO2 savings by 2020.
Livestock: Waste Disposal
Mr. Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will take steps to facilitate the use of bio-digestion as a method of disposal of fallen stock. [269320]
Jane Kennedy:
Under the EU animal by-products regulation bio-digestion is not a permitted route for disposal of fallen stock. However, the regulation does provide for alternative methods of disposal to be approved following a positive opinion as to their safe use as a
disposal route by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). Research is currently ongoing on possible use of bioreducer systems and anaerobic digestion as a means of containing and treating fallen stock prior to their final disposal by rendering or incineration. The Government support such research and will help facilitate the submission of well founded cases to EFSA for consideration as approved alternative methods for containment of fallen stock.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he plans to introduce on-farm storage of fallen stock. [269324]
Jane Kennedy: The EU animal by-products regulation requires fallen stock to be disposed of without undue delay. Pending collection for disposal, carcases should be held in such a way that domestic animals (including farmed livestock) and wild animals cannot gain access to them. In practice, it would be reasonable to expect them to be held securely, such as in an enclosed building, or an area away from livestock under a suitable cover, such as a tarpaulin. For the future, the Government support research into bioreducer systems which, if accepted as an alternative method of containment for fallen stock under the above regulation, may make it possible to contain and treat fallen stock on farm safely for a longer period pending its eventual collection for disposal by rendering or incineration.
Members: Correspondence
Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to reply to the letter of 22 January 2009 from the hon. Member for Northavon, sent on behalf of Miss D. Moore of Hinton, on buy one get one free schemes. [269019]
Jane Kennedy: I responded to the hon. Member's letter on 20 April and apologise for the delay in doing so.
Packaging: Waste Disposal
Stephen Hesford: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to encourage appropriate biodegradable packaging of products. [268777]
Jane Kennedy: Switching from using oil-based plastics to genuinely biodegradable renewable polymers/bioplastics can deliver environmental benefits, providing they are appropriately handled after disposal. DEFRA works closely with the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to develop policy in this area. The DECC-sponsored National Non-Food Crops Centre (NNFCC) has established a Thematic Working Group to bring together those involved in the renewable polymer supply chain, to help realise the economic and environmental benefits of renewable polymer technologies and products.
In addition, NNFCC, the DEFRA funded Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) and the Association for Organics Recycling (formerly the Composting Association) have been contributing to a ‘Green Alliance’ project, under the ‘Closing the Loop’
umbrella, looking specifically at biodegradable packaging. A guidance note and web based information tool has been developed. These are on the Green Alliance website and can be viewed via:
They set out considerations to be taken into account when deciding which packaging applications are most suited to biodegradable compostable materials and highlight some of the disposal issues which need to be overcome to ensure the materials are properly disposed of at end of life.
Reservoirs
Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the reservoir capacity in England and Wales was in (a) 1989 and (b) January 2009. [268944]
Huw Irranca-Davies: The reservoir capacity in 1989 cannot be calculated without incurring disproportionate cost.
The total capacity of water company reservoirs in England and Wales which fall under the Reservoirs Act 1975 (large raised reservoirs with a capacity of 25,000 cu m of water or more above natural ground level) was around 2,316 million cu m in January 2009.
Water: Meters
Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the cost of installing individual water meters in each unmetered domestic property in England. [268945]
Huw Irranca-Davies: My Department has not made such an estimate. Research undertaken by WRc plc in 2007 based on water company data found that installation costs per meter vary from around £50 for the replacement of an existing meter to around £230 or more for a new installation.
Energy and Climate Change
Departmental Records
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the answer of 23 June 2008, Official Report, column 150W, on the Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act 2000, what the (a) prefix and (b) title is of each file held by his Department on (i) the Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act 2000 and (ii) Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Bill of Session 1999-2000; and if he will make a statement. [268500]
Joan Ruddock: The Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act 2000 is an Act which deals with tackling fuel poverty. Before the formation of the Department of Energy and Climate Change, responsibility for fuel poverty policies, and therefore matters connected to the Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Bill/Act was shared between the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and their predecessor Departments. Files relating to the subject matter of this question are located in the filing systems of the predecessor Departments as well as the current Department.
To establish the total number of files relating to the Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act/Bill would require a trawl of a significant number of files which could only be carried out at disproportionate cost. For this reason it is not considered reasonable to provide a list of all the files on the subject matter of this question.
Housing: Insulation
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much has been spent by his Department on the development of energy efficient insulation (a) technology and (b) initiatives to assist households since its establishment. [265445]
Joan Ruddock: Funding to encourage take-up of energy efficiency measures in Great Britain is available primarily through two schemes: the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT) and Warm Front, but only Warm Front is funded from the public purse. The following table illustrates the investment made by Warm Front in insulation measures to improve the energy efficiency of householders over 60 in (a) Test Valley, (b) the ceremonial county of Hampshire and (c) the city of Southampton in each year since 2005.
CERT is operated and funded by the six major energy suppliers, which are required to meet targets by encouraging households to take-up energy efficiency measures, including insulation and high-efficiency lights and appliances. Ofgem, the scheme administrator, does not collect data on energy supplier spend. However, based on the costs of the measures promoted by suppliers, we estimate that the overall spend by suppliers on delivering their CERT obligations across Great Britain will exceed £3 billion over the period 2008-11.
| £ | |||
| Over 60 | Under 60 | Total | |
Members: Correspondence
Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Northavon of 19 December 2008 on behalf of Mr. and Mrs. Wilson of Old Sodbury. [267263]
Joan Ruddock: I replied to the hon. Member for Northavon on 13 April. I apologise for the delay, which was due to departmental reorganisation.
Nuclear Safety Advisory Committee
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will place in the Library a copy of the Nuclear Safety Advisory Committee's most recent annual report. [266785]
Jonathan Shaw: I have been asked to reply.
A copy of the Nuclear Safety Advisory Committee's report FOR 2007-08 is published on the HSE's website and a copy has been placed in the Library.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which bodies are undertaking work formerly undertaken by the Nuclear Safety Advisory Committee. [266788]
Jonathan Shaw: I have been asked to reply.
The Committee reached the end of its term of office in October 2008 and the Board of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) decided to defer any decision on future arrangements for providing independent technical advice on nuclear safety, pending various reviews. Any decision will need to take account of the arrangements, yet to be finalised, to implement the Stone review of nuclear regulation. Experts staff HSE's Nuclear Directorate and it calls on many external sources of advice on nuclear safety when it needs them.
Renewable Energy: Finance
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the budget for the Hydrogen, Fuel Cell and Carbon Abatement Technologies Demonstration Programme is in each year from 2008-09 to 2013-14. [266603]
Joan Ruddock: The Hydrogen, Fuel Cells and Carbon Abatement Technologies Demonstration Programme is now supported under the Government's Environmental Transformation Fund (ETF). The following table outlines financial commitment up to 2014:
| ETF Total | £ million |
A joint call on Carbon Abatement Technologies, worth some £15 million, was announced on 12 February 2009 by the ETF, the Technology Strategy Board (TSB) and the Northern Way.
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