Written question asked by Llew Smith (Labour) on Tuesday, 20 January 1998, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 28 January 1998. It was answered by Lord Rooker (Labour) on Wednesday, 28 January 1998 on behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food

Question: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, what information he has as to the amounts of seaweed used as a fertiliser in the United Kingdom; what assessment his Department has made of the extent to which there has been bio-accumulation of toxic and radiotoxic materials in the seaweed feedstock.

Answer: Mr. Llew Smith: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information he has as to the amounts of seaweed used as a fertiliser in the United Kingdom; what assessment his Department has made of the extent to which there has been bio-accumulation of toxic and radiotoxic materials in the seaweed feedstock. [25064] Mr. Rooker: I have no information on the amount of seaweed used as a fertiliser in the United Kingdom. The Ministry does not have information on the bio-accumulation of toxic materials in seaweed. Radioactivity concentrations in seaweed sampled from around the coasts of the British Isles are given in the annual Radioactivity in Food and the Environment report published by the Ministry. The bio-accumulation or concentration factors for various radionuclides in seaweed have been published by the International Atomic Energy Authority in Technical Report number 247 (1985).

Secondary information