Vol. 347 No. 9
asked the Minister for Energy the steps he has taken to ascertain the effect of recent accidental discharges of radioactive effluent from the Sellafield nuclear plant in Cumbria; and the effect of continuing routine discharges from the plant on radioactivity levels in fish caught by Irish fishing fleets in the Irish Sea and on the resulting radiation dose level affecting the Irish population.
303.
asked the Minister for Energy the routine monitoring being carried out to establish the levels of radioactivity which accumulate in fish caught in the Irish Sea; and the results that have been obtained.
304.
asked the Minister for Energy the representations, if any, he has made to the British authorities regarding the future level and incidence of the recent accidental discharges of radioactive effluent from the Sellafield nuclear plant in Cumbria; and the result.
I am taking Questions Nos. 302 to 304, inclusive, together.
Following the accidental discharges of radioactive effluent from the Sellafield plant in November of last year, the Nuclear Energy Board immediately expressed Ireland's concern to the relevant UK authorities. They also carried out two radiological surveys of beaches on our eastern coastline. The results of the surveys show no traces to date of the contaminants reported on the beach near Sellafield.
As Minister for the Environment, I expressed our concern at the discharge levels to the UK Prime Minister during the Anglo-Irish Summit talks. The Department of Energy have also been in contact with the UK authorities in the matter and meetings at ministerial level are proposed for the near future.
The Nuclear Energy Board have an ongoing programme of monitoring designed to provide information on the distribution of radioactivity in the Irish Sea. Samples of fish are analysed by the board and also independently by our universities. The Department of Fisheries assist in the provision of fish samples. The results continue to show that the radiation exposure of a member of the public arising from the fish consumption pathway is less that one part in a hundred of the safety limits recommended by the International Commission on Radiological Protection and the EEC. Consequently risks, if any, arising from fish consumption in Ireland, are negligible and can be discounted.
