Vol. 504 No. 6
30 Mr. Ferris asked the Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources the number of vessels which passed through the Irish Sea during the past 12 months which were carrying nuclear waste or nuclear materials; if he has satisfied himself that appropriate safety arrangements are in place to deal with any threat to the safety of Irish coasts or waters arising from this traffic; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12426/99]
There is no information in my Department's records to indicate that any vessels which were carrying nuclear waste or nuclear materials passed through the Irish Sea during the past 12 months.
In my reply to a previous question on 25 March 1999, I indicated that the IMO Assembly in November 1997 had agreed that the INF code which governs the transport of irradiated nuclear fuels by sea should be made mandatory for the future. Work on implementing that decision is proceeding apace. In the meantime, I am pleased to be able to inform the House that the European Union has adopted a directive requiring all vessels carrying such materials bound for or leaving a Community port to comply with strict notification procedures and controls.
I signed the regulations transposing the directive in question into Irish law on 21 April 1999 as required under the terms of the directive even though such vessels do not use Irish ports or transit Irish waters and I am gratified that the EU controls in question now apply to all vessels en route to Sellafield.
