asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he has any evidence of invertebrate mortalities being caused at Lough Neagh by the spillage of wood preservative at Crumlin on 29 January; whether he has any evidence of wildlife mortalities since his reply of 31 March, Official Report, columns 501–2; and whether he will provide further information on the wildlife surveys to be carried out in the area.
Extensive samples of chironomid (midge) larvae were taken from Lennymore Bay in Lough Neagh on 17 February by the Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland's Fisheries Laboratory. Sites sampled near the mouth of the stream
| Results in nanogrammes per litre (ng/l) | |||
| Location | Sampling period | Analyst | Range of results ng/l |
| WATER SAMPLES(DIELDRIN) | |||
| Lennymore Bay near mouth of affected stream | 11 February 1987 | Department of Economic Development, Industrial Science Division | 200 |
| Lennymore Bay (seven points) | 11 February 1987 | Department of Economic Development, Industrial Science Division | 2–45 |
| Eastern Shore of Lough Neagh (two points) | 11 February 1987 | Department of Economic Development, Industrial Science Division | 2 |
| Castor Bay | 2 March 1987–20 March 1987 | Department of Economic Development, Industrial Science Division | Not detected |
| Dunore Point | 31 January 1987–4 April 1987 | Department of Economic Development, Industrial Science Division | Not detected |
| Washing Bay | 5 March 1987 | Department of Economic Development, Industrial Science Division | Not detected |
| WATER SAMPLES (TBTO) | |||
| Lennymore Bay (17 points) | 4 February 1987–18 February 1987 | Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland and Chemistry Department Queen's University, Belfast | 5–628 |
| Eastern Shore of Lough Neagh (two points) | 4 February 1987–18 February 1987 | Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland and Chemistry Department Queen's University, Belfast | 6–103 |
into which the wood preservative leaked, indicated chironomid mortality of up to 50 per cent. but other areas in the bay showed no sign of chironomid deaths. A further examination on 3 March showed mortalities had been arrested. An assessment of survival numbers is currently being carried out on behalf of the Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland by the University of Ulster and a further survey will be made later this year to assess how successfully chironomids have been re-established. There is no evidence of any other wildlife mortalities associated with the incident. The regular monthly counts of wildfowl at Lough Neagh and the continuing programme of fish testing for pesticide residues will indicate any long-term effects of the spillage.
asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, further to his reply of 31 March, Official Report, columns 501–2, if he will list details of the water and fish sampling of Lough Neagh for tributyltin oxide and dieldrin following the spillage of wood preservative into the lough by location, date and sampling body.
Following the spillage of wood preservative at Crumlin a monitoring programme for water in Lough Neagh was organised by the Departments of the Environment and Agriculture for Northern Ireland. Samples of trout, pollen, roach and eels from Lough Neagh were obtained from commercial sources by the Fisheries Research Laboratory on 25 February and on 9, 11 and 13 March. Regular analyses of water from the lough put into public supply have not indicated any trace of TBTO or Dieldrin. Details of the water sampling are set out in the tables:
Location
| Sampling period
| Analyst
| Range of results ng/l
|
| Main body of Neagh (nine points) | 2 March 1987 | Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland and Chemistry Department Queen's University, Belfast | Not detected |
| Castor Bay | 2 march 1987–5 April 1987 | Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland and Chemistry Department Queen's University, Belfast | 5–95 |
| Dunore Point | 2 March 1987–4 April 1987 | Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland and Chemistry Department Queen's University, Belfast | 2·5–30 |
| Washing Bay | 5 March 1987–16 March 1987 | Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland and Chemistry Department Queen's University, Belfast | 2·5–25 |
| Kinnego Bay | 10 March 1987–16 March 1987 | Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland and Chemistry Department Queen's University, Belfast | 12·5–32·5 |
asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether, pursuant to his reply of 31 March, Official Report, columns 501–2, he is now able to detail the measures that will be taken to prevent a recurrence of a leakage of wood preservative from the Crumlin factory and other works using such chemicals in Northern Ireland.
The occupier of the Crumlin factory where the wood preservative was spilled has been required to fit equipment to the treatment chamber to prevent use of the preservative unless the access doors are sealed and to create a bonded area with a retaining capacity in excess of the maximum volume of fluid held. Inspections are being made of other factories in Northern Ireland using such chemicals to check that proper precautions are being taken to minimise accidents and to ensure containment.
asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he has notified the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources of the Lough Neagh pollution incident involving the Lough Neagh Ramsar site, as required under article 3·2 of the convention on wetlands of international importance; and whether a report on this incident will be made to the forthcoming conference of contracting parties to the convention at Regina, Canada.
| Northern Ireland Health and Personal Social Services Staff at 30 September | ||||||||
| (a) | (b) | (c) | (d) | |||||
| Nursing and Midwifery | Ancillary and General | Administration and Clerical | Professional and Technical | |||||
| Number | Whole-time equivalents | Number | Whole-time equivalents | Number | Whole-time equivalents | Number | Whole-time equivalents | |
| 1979 | 18,622 | 16,550·96 | 26,456 | 14,947·32 | 5,395 | 4,999·69 | 3,413 | 3,038·64 |
| 1980 | 19,758 | 17,484·14 | 26,660 | 15,151·60 | 6,050 | 5,587·69 | 3,569 | 3,179·02 |
| 1981 | 20,882 | 18,554·60 | 28,210 | 15,671·51 | 6,222 | 5,741·39 | 3,691 | 3,291·07 |
| 1982 | 21,286 | 19,022·99 | 28,825 | 15,795·77 | 6,376 | 5,876·00 | 3,740 | 3,340·24 |
| 1983 | 21,395 | 19,159·89 | 28,639 | 15,541·76 | 6,412 | 5,891·58 | 3,807 | 3,415·49 |
| 1984 | 21,161 | 19,006·20 | 28,157 | 15,202·91 | 6,484 | 5,954·11 | 3,851 | 3,464·01 |
| 1985 | 20,916 | 18,730·28 | 27,608 | 14,953·24 | 6,562 | 6,018·90 | 3,820 | 3,423·64 |
| 1986 | 20,722 | 18,496·27 | 26,771 | 14,470·09 | 6,710 | 6,120·97 | 3,764 | 3,373·52 |
Notes:
1. The figures quoted are in respect of the health and personal social services.
2. A breakdown of numbers into full-time and part-time is not readily available.
If, when full information on the effects of the Lough Neagh pollution incident is available, any adverse effect on the ecological character of the lough is apparent a report will be sent to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.Similarly an interim report will be made to the conference of contracting parties to the Ramsar Convention at Regina, Canada in the event of any such adverse effect on the ecology.There is currently no evidence of any adverse effects on the waterfowl in Lough Neagh as a result of this incident.