In the period from 1970 to 1994 approximately 1,360 tonnes of obsolete ammunition was disposed of at sea in the Beaufort Dyke and the North Atlantic. The material consisted of small arms ammunition, bombs, depth charges, fuses, primers, shells, grenades, pyrotechnics, etc. Under the Dumping at Sea Act, 1996, such dumping is no longer permitted. I am advised by the military authorities that their records relate only to the disposal of obsolete ammunition referred to above.
Under the Dumping at Sea Act, 1996, certain members of the Defence Forces serving on board Naval Service vessels are designated as authorised officers for the purposes of the Act. This enables them to take certain actions in relation to dumping at sea, including the monitoring of the effects of any such dumping.