asked the Minister for Labour if dangerous chemicals which could give off clouds of dioxin and hydrogen chloride were stored in dangerous circumstances by a company (details supplied) at West Pier, Dún Laoghaire, County Dublin and were moved in February 1987 to premises owned by a company (details supplied) in the North Docks area of Dublin 1; if he has satisfied himself that there is no danger involved in their storage in the centre of Dublin; if he will give details of their storage conditions; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Written Answers. - Storage of Dangerous Substances.
65.
My Department was aware that certain dangerous substances were stored at West Pier, Dun Laoghaire, County Dublin. The substances in question are declared to be dangerous under the Dangerous Substances Act, 1972 (Part IV Declaration) Order 1986 (S.I. No. 267 of 1986) for the purposes of Part IV of the Dangerous Substances Act. Section 25 of that Act requires, among other things, that a person engaged in the storage of dangerous substances shall take all practicable steps to prevent risk of injury to person or property.
In the light of my Department's responsibilities as regards this legislation, the industrial inspectorate, along with the emergency services, was carefully monitoring the circumstances of storage at that location to eliminate storage in dangerous circumstances.
More recently my Department was informed that the substances in question had been removed to another location in Mayor Street, Dublin. I have asked the industrial inspectorate to examine the situation carefully to ensure that those substances are safely stored at the new location. As soon as I receive a report of the outcome of those investigations I will write to the Deputy.