To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what advice his Department has issued on methods of aerial spraying to be used following oil spills; and what reports his Department has received in the last two years on the effectiveness of methods of tackling oil spills. [30284]
The Marine Pollution Control Unit (MPCU) of my Department's Coastguard Agency is responsible for the Government's response to oil spills. The MPCU receive few requests for advice on this method of combating marine oil spills, but when it does it makes reference to:
"Retaining oil dispersants as a means of dealing with spilt oil when economic and environmental resources are at risk is fully justified."
The recently published report by the Sea Empress Environmental Evaluation Committee "The Environmental Impact of the Sea Empress Oil Spill" (ISBN 0–11–702156–3) published by the Stationery Office, assessed the effectiveness of the clean-up in Pembrokeshire. This assessment looked at all aspects of the clean-up in detail. The general conclusions found that the clean-up was well managed and that the use of aerial spraying of dispersants considerably reduced the quantity of oil impacting the shoreline and will have had significant environmental benefits.