N-Base Briefing 190

N-BASE BRIEFING 190 - 25th July 1999

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SEPA issues new Dounreay authorisations

Six years after the application was first submitted, new radioactive waste discharge authorisations for Dounreay have finally been approved. The authorisations were recommended by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and last week they were approved by Scottish environment minister Sarah Boyack.

When the application was first made by plant operators the UK Atomic Energy Authority a big increase in reprocessing work at Dounreay was planned with hopes for new work from research reactor operators around the world. Since then the scene at Dounreay has changed dramatically.

The hoped for market from research reactors collapsed because of costs and environmental concerns and opposition from the American government; both reprocessing plants at Dounreay closed - the highly-enriched uranium plant because of lack of research reactor work and is now being decommissioned; the mixed oxide plant closed after a serious leak; government regulators condemned orations and management of the plant and issued over 140 safety demands; and the government announced an end to commercial reprocessing at the plant. No decision has yet been made on whether the government is willing to spend an estimated GBP40 million to repair and re-open the main reprocessing plant, or whether alternatives will be found for dealing with the remaining fuel at the site.

The new discharge limits are greatly reduced from what Dounreay originally applied for and are considered adequate for the site's main activity of decommissioning and waste clean-up.

*** The full Summary of the SEPA Decision was reprinted in the subscriber's version of this Briefing ***

Plutonium shipment leaves

Two British Nuclear Fuel ships equipped with heavy canons and armed guards left Europe last week for Japan carrying their controversial plutonium fuel shipments to Japan. The Pacific Teal left Cherbourg on Wednesday with 32 plutonium mixed oxide fuel elements which were manufactured in Belgium. The fuel was made using 221kg of plutonium of Japanese fuel reprocessed at the La Hague complex.

Offshore the vessel joined the Pacific Pintail which is carrying eight plutonium fuel elements manufactured at Sellafield where the Japanese spent fuel was originally reprocessed.

It has been announced that the vessels, which will sail together to Japan to increase security, will travel to Japan via the Cape of Good Hope, the Indian Ocean and the south-west Pacific Ocean. The shipments are sure to raise storms of protests from countries along their route because of security and environmental concerns. No information has been given to coastal states. In 1992 over 50 countries protested at a plutonium shipment from Europe to Japan which took a similar route.

British Nuclear Fuels has taken legal action in the UK and Europe to try and prevent Greenpeace interfering with the ships. Among the many protest over the shipment was once from the Nuclear Free Local Authorities, who also criticised the legal action against Greenpeace. The organisation argued it was the plutonium shipment which should be banned - not Greenpeace.

News in Brief

Vitrification plant shut

Sellafield's radioactive high-level waste vitrification plant has been shut due to blocked pipework.

Phone masts stopped

The West of Scotland Water has temporarily banned mobile phone microwave masts from its land because of health fears. The water authority said it was introducing the temporary ban because of public concern over microwave radiation.

Uranium health worries

A report prepared for the European Commission has warned of the health risks from depleted uranium contained in NATO weapons during the conflict in Yugoslavia. The Regional Environmental Centre for Central and Western Europe warned that depleted uranium was "perhaps the most dangerous" of the carcinogenic and toxic substances used in the conflict. A UN team is conducting a survey on the environmental impacts of the weapons sued, including shells containing depleted uranium.

Sea dumping fine

The world's largest cruise company, Royal Caribbean Cruises, has been fined GBP11.4 million by the American authorities for illegally dumping waste oil and chemicals at sea. The company admitted dumping oily bilge water and hazardous chemicals from dry cleaning, printing and photo processing shops on its vessels.

Naval captain freed

Grigory Pasko, the former Russian navy captain, has been freed after a military court imposed only a nominal sentence for passing film of radioactive waste being dumped in the Sea of Japan to Japanese television.

Leak at Chernobyl

Three workers received raised radiation doses following an incident at the Chernobyl nuclear reactor recently while using a radiation monitoring device.

Amersham health fears

A report commissioned by local authorities has raised the possibility of a link between raised child death rates in Cardiff and radioactive discharges from the Nycomed Amersham factory at Whitchurch in the city which produces medical radioactive isotopes. The report by consultant Hugh Richards states that during the mid-1980s baby death rates in Cardiff were 40 per cent higher than England and Wales and coincided with the highest emissions of radioactive tritium from the factory. The company has denied the link and supported comments by the National Radiological protection Board which criticised the research and said it was unaware of any link.