| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
26 Oct 2009 : Column 46W—continued
Domestic Waste: Waste Disposal
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research (a) his Department and (b) the Waste and Resources Action Programme has undertaken into smells and odours from household waste. [294856]
Dan Norris: The Waste and Resources Action Programme and the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management Scoping Study of Potential Health Effects of Fortnightly Residual Waste Collection and Related Changes to Domestic Waste Systems report, published in July 2009, provides a review of the current knowledge on householder as well as occupational impacts of smell and odours associated with the collection of household wastes.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans he has to prohibit the disposal of domestic food waste in landfill. [294857]
Dan Norris: The Government are currently assessing the case for introducing further restrictions on sending biodegradable waste, including food waste, to landfill. This assessment will be informed by two pieces of research on landfill bans, one ongoing and one recently published. A full public consultation will take place in the next few months.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what guidance (a) his Department and (b) the Waste and Resources Action Programme has issued on the disposal of waste receptacle and recycling boxes at the end of their life. [294868]
Dan Norris: Neither DEFRA nor the Waste and Resources Action Programme has issued any guidance on the disposal of waste receptacle and recycling boxes at the end of their life.
Exmoor National Park
Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) how many pre-planning applications were received per parish in the Exmoor National Park in the last three years; [295264]
(2) how many pre-planning applications were submitted to the committee of the Exmoor National Park in each year since 2005-06; [295265]
(3) how many pre-planning applications submitted to the committee of the Exmoor National Park were subject to delegated powers in the last three years for which figures are available; [295266]
(4) how many of the pre-planning applications submitted to the committee of the Exmoor National Park resulted in full planning submissions in the last three years; [295267]
(5) how many pre-planning applications submitted to the Committee of the Exmoor National Park in the last three years involved a visit by a planning officer; [295268]
(6) how many pre-planning applications submitted to the committee of the Exmoor National Park in the last three years were contested. [295269]
Huw Irranca-Davies: The Town and Country Planning Act provisions do not include a category of 'pre-planning application' and therefore it is not clear exactly what information is required. My Department has made Exmoor National Park Authority aware of the above questions and it would be happy to provide further information if the hon. Member for Bridgwater would contact it directly with clarification.
Exmoor National Park Authority: Public Appointments
Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the total cost to his Department was of appointments to the committee of the Exmoor National Park made by the Secretary of State in the last three years. [295262]
Huw Irranca-Davies: The Secretary of State appoints members every year to each of the English National Park Authorities that have vacancies. The process for inviting applications and selecting the successful candidates also involves Natural England, the National Park Authorities and the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments. The cost of making these appointments for Exmoor or the other individual park authorities is therefore not available.
Horses: Animal Welfare
Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking in the Council of Ministers to seek to improve the welfare of live horses during transport in mainland Europe. [295690]
Jim Fitzpatrick: At the Agriculture Council on 7 September the Secretary of State, Hilary Benn, expressed concern at the unnecessarily long journeys some animals, including horses, undertake within Europe, particularly for slaughter. He urged the European Commission to give due consideration to shorter journey times and improved enforcement of welfare in transport rules when they bring forward proposals to review the welfare in transport regulation 1/2005.
Ivory: Smuggling
Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to assist African countries to tackle the illegal ivory trade. [295496]
Huw Irranca-Davies: The Government support initiatives to improve enforcement under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). They have provided support over several years to the CITES programmes: MIKE (Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants) and ETIS (Elephant Trade Information System). The latter monitors the illegal trade in ivory and elephant products.
Keep Britain Tidy: Finance
Mr. Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much funding his Department has provided for Keep Britain Tidy in the last three years; and how much funding he plans to provide in 2009-10. [294997]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The following table shows DEFRA's grant to Keep Britain Tidy in the current year and in the previous three years:
| £ million | |
| Source: DEFRA | |
Landfill
Ms Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what proportion of municipal waste went to landfill in each local authority area in 2007-08. [295845]
Dan Norris: The following table shows the proportion of municipal waste sent to landfill. The data can also be found on the DEFRA website.
These data are only available for unitary authorities and waste disposal authorities. Waste collection authorities' waste is disposed of by their waste disposal authority.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |