Story Courtesy of Western Morning News
Campaigners last night
challenged the Ministry of Defence to "see for yourself" the
devastating effect of hundreds of thousands of tonnes of waste
dredged up from the River Tamar and dumped off Whitsand Bay.
They challenged the MoD to examine the evidence of silt suffocating
plant life within six metres of the shore, industrial waste strewn
about the seabed, and diseased or dying shellfish.
Their call comes as the Western Morning News publishes photographs
taken by diver Dave Peake in November of the pollution under the
gleaming surface of the sea in the bay, in south east Cornwall. He
blames the MoD project for RAFT (Remote Ammunitioning Facility
Tamar) - which was abandoned at a cost of £25 million and involved
the dredging of around 500,000 tonnes of material - for dramatically
worsening the pollution.
He said last night: "If this was happening out in the open, in a
park, or on land, there'd be all hell to pay. But because it's
hidden under the water it has official approval. This is a disgrace
- and these pictures prove what is happening."
The campaigners' anger mounted after the revelation on Wednesday
that the MoD has been granted a licence to increase fourfold the
amount of waste it dumps off the Rame Head site from 50,533 to
201,527 tonnes in 2005.
The Ministry says this is necessary to keep the channel of the Tamar
open for marine traffic.
The campaigners warned that fishing and tourism would suffer if the
bay - where the artificial reef Scylla was sunk as a diving
attraction - continued to be degraded.
The Liberal Democrat MP for South East Cornwall, Colin Breed, said
last night that he would be looking afresh at ways to have the
dumping stopped, and would be examining the possibility of an
injunction from the European Commission.
Mr Breed was furious at the way that the licence had been approved
by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
He found out about the MoD's application for a new dumping licence,
which will operate for three years, in a letter from Environment
Minister Elliot Morley.
That December 21 letter, which Mr Breed received after requesting
information on December 1, said the application was "currently being
considered".
Yet Defra confirmed on Wednesday that the licence was approved
"before Christmas" - within three days of the letter being sent.
Mr Breed said: "I'll be raising this issue in Parliament next week
because it undermines the whole process of ministerial responses and
accountability. Whether it was cock-up or conspiracy is hard to
tell. But it's deeply suspicious. I think they were trying to sneak
this through, and that's just appalling."
Mr Breed said he would be using the Freedom of Information Act,
which came into force on January 1, to demand Defra reports on
applications to dump waste off Rame Head.
He did not know what information had or had not been withheld - but
said that now was the time to get all the facts into the open.
"Time is short," he said. "I was hoping to stop this, but that's
more difficult now.
"But I'm going to Brussels at the end of the month and it will be an
opportunity to raise this matter at a European level to see if
anything can be done. It may be that we can get an injunction, or
take other action."
Mr Breed called on the MoD to seek alternative sites for dumping
dredged waste instead of taking the "cheap option" off nearby Rame
Head, where the sea was overloaded with a build-up of silt and
waste.
He said the Ministry should look at transporting the waste further
out, where a natural marine shelf means the sea level deepens
suddenly from around 30 to 50 or 60 metres.
That way the waste could disperse harmlessly outwards rather than be
churned up and settle in the confined space of the bay.
Mr Peake, who first highlighted the state of the bay, echoed the
call last night, saying: "It's the only option. Everyone recognises
that the MoD has to dredge the Tamar to keep the channels clear.
"But it's what they do with the waste that matters - and so far
they've shown no sign whatsoever of caring for the environment."
Mr Peake said he hoped his photographic evidence of the pollution
reaching the shallows of the bay would "up the ante" in the fight to
have the dumping off Rame Head stopped.
"I would like them to see what this is doing," he said. "I have a
huge photographic record of the pollution - these pictures show it's
as bad as ever. And what is significant is that it's evident in the
winter, not just the summer.
"There has been the same washing machine effect in the bay that
we've seen before where all the waste gets swept about. I took these
photographs snorkelling in six metres of water, which shows the
extent of the pollution that it has come so close inshore.
"There's begiatoa there, a bacteria, which you might expect in
summer, but not in the winter.
"As a former police diver, I know that you'd usually see this in
canals, ponds or quarries or where there is stagnant water.
"It shouldn't be in Whitsand Bay, because it only exists where
everything is suffocating."
Other campaigners last night warned that they would step up the
political pressure over the pollution.
Rame councillor Sheryll Murray said: "This site has been used for
years and years, but they have to start looking for alternative
sites. The MoD and Defra have taken the easy way out."
South East Cornwall Conservative spokesman Ashley Gray said he would
be launching a door-to-door petition over the issue.
"They are going to have to come up with some pretty convincing
arguments why the dumping should not stop now," he said.
"This isn't a party political issue - if Colin Breed does likewise
with a petition, that would be fantastic."
The MoD last night reiterated that the increase in dredging was
necessary to keep the Tamar clear for marine traffic. Spokesman Guy
Boswell said this had to be done every five to ten years.
He added: "All questions about where material may be disposed of at
sea in licensed spoil ground is a matter solely for Defra. The MoD
does not dispose of or 'dump'.
"The position is that sub-contractors apply for licences to remove
and dispose of dredged material. Defra analyses and makes decisions
about environmental damage based on the content of the dumped
material regarding pollutants and the likely dispersal at the
disposal ground. They then issue licences if appropriate.
"The decision about where, if any, material may be disposed of at
sea in licensed spoil grounds is solely a matter for Defra."
Defra spokesman David Burrows said: "The issue of the this licence
close on the heels of Mr Morley's response to Colin Breed's letter
is no more than a coincidence and there is certainly no question
that the licence was 'sneaked through'.
"The application was subject to the standard consultation process,
which included English Nature and the Environment Agency, neither of
whom raised any concerns with the proposal.
"The Rame Head disposal site has been the centre of much debate over
recent years and is being closely monitored by our marine scientists
at Cefas, who are currently undertaking additional field
investigations, the results of which will be reported in due course.
"In the meantime Defra has had to balance the environmental concerns
with the need to maintain sufficient depth at the naval base at
Devonport for work to continue there, and it was on this basis that
the licence was issued.
"Following advice from Cesfas the licence includes conditions to
ensure that sediment mobility during the disposal operation is
minimised by restricting disposal to the southern side of the
disposal site and on the ebb and slack tides only.
"The licence as a whole will be reviewed as soon as the on-going
monitoring report is released."
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