Dounreay Reprocessing to end - 18th July 2001

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Reprocessing ends at Dounreay

However Mr Wilson's statement does not make clear exactly what is to happen to the fuel. He accepts that spending up to GBP40 millions on repairing and improving the reprocessing plant to meet the demands of safety regulators, who closed the plant in 1998, "risks diverting valuable resources from the restoration of the site".

The statement gives no clear indication of the government decision on the future of the fuel - other than that Mr Wilson has asked Dounreay "to take whatever action is necessary to ensure the safety and security of the fuel".

Mr Wilson said later today, when asked what would happen to the fuel, that its future was a matter for Dounreay to negotiate with the regulators. It is unclear why he has chosen not to make a positive decision on the future of the fuel. One possibility might be a reluctance for the government to be seen to be rejecting reprocessing in favour of storage - instead leaving it to the UKAEA to make the decision. Also, the announcement still leaves open the possibility that some or all of the fuel could be reprocessed at Sellafield - a move which would be opposed throughout Scotland because of the hazardous transport and the resulting radioactive discharges into the sea from the Cumbrian site.

The public consultation on the management of the fuel, which started 18 months ago, offered three options: reprocessing the fuel at Dounreay; reprocessing some at Dounreay and some or all at Sellafield; or putting the fuel into long-term storage. While rejecting the first option, Mr Wilson has not said which option he has chosen, although the inference from his statement is for the fuel to be stored, safely and securely, at least in the short term, if not the long-term.

The Government press statement issued today commented: "No clear preference emerged from [the] UKAEA's assessment of the options, or the public consultation." This is perhaps a surprising comment given the overwhelming opposition in Scotland and the neighbouring Nordic countries to reprocessing in favour of storage.

Reproduced below are Mr Wilson's statement - and the N-Base Briefing 283, published on 24th June, which discussed the possibility of a decision to end reprocessing.

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DEPARTMENT OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY PRESS STATEMENT

P/2001/383

18 July 2001

WILSON: 'RULING OUT REPROCESSING AT DOUNREAY IS THE RIGHT WAY FORWARD'

"It is important to get on with the job of the environmental restoration of Dounreay. This decision gives the workforce and management a clear way forward to complete this nationally important task. UKAEA welcome this clear focus for all involved.

"I have considered carefully the advice and comments I have received for dealing with this fuel. Following an extensive consultation it is clear that refurbishing the reprocessing facilities at Dounreay risks diverting valuable resources from the restoration of the site.

"I have taken full account of UKAEA's work to identify the best environmental option during the public consultation.

"The Dounreay Site Restoration Plan sets out an ambitious vision for dealing with the challenge faced by UKAEA, and has my full support. It will ensure that Dounreay continues to play an important role in the development of the local economy, and offers opportunities to develop a world class industry for the UK.

"UKAEA should now focus on the challenges of decommissioning Dounreay and consider the options for dealing with this fuel as part of the development of the overall site restoration plan.

"I have discussed with UKAEA the importance of decommissioning work to the regional economy and welcome their willingness to co-operate closely with Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Highlands Council. I intend to take a close interest in the progress of this work."

Notes for Editors

1. The Prototype Fast Reactor was an experimental facility at Dounreay, Scotland. It closed in 1992 following the conclusion of the fast breeder reactor research programme.

2. The majority of the fuel from the reactor has been reprocessed at Dounreay, but reprocessing stopped in 1996 following breakdown of the equipment. It has not been operational since then. In 1998 the then Minister for Industry and Energy (John Battle) and the then Secretary of State for Scotland (the late Donald Dewar) announced the end of commercial reprocessing at Dounreay.

3. In April 2000, the then Minister for Energy and Competitiveness in Europe, the Rt Hon Helen Liddell, announced a public consultation into the future of this fuel. Three options were considered: reprocessing at Dounreay; reprocessing at Sellafield and Dounreay/or overseas; or storage. No clear preference emerged from UKAEA's assessment of the options, or the public consultation.

4. This decision takes account of:

* the importance of restoring the Dounreay site;

* technical and economic arguments, and the views of safety and environmental regulators.

* the economic impact of the environmental restoration of Dounreay, an investment estimated to be £4bn in total and of the order of £1.5bn over the next 10 years.

Public Enquires: 0207-215 5000
General Enquiries textphone (for people with hearing impairments):
0207-215 6740
Internet address: http://www.dti.gov.uk

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N-BASE BRIEFING 283 - 24th June 2001

283.1 Dounreay - An end to reprocessing ?

The UK Government is set to announce the end of reprocessing at Dounreay
according to a report in today's Sunday Herald newspaper.  A public
consultation on the future of nearly 25 tonnes of spent fuel at the
plant was held over a year ago and a decision on the three options
was initially expected last summer.  The three options were
re-opening the main reprocessing plant at Dounreay to deal with
the fuel; reprocessing some at Dounreay and some
 at Sellafield; or putting the fuel into long-term dry storage.

If the reports are correct it will mark the end of nearly two decades of
work by the SIC and organisations in Shetland and must be warmly welcomed.
Reprocessing the fuel would have meant a return to the huge sea discharges
of old.  It is to be hoped a decision to store the Dounreay fuel will
encourage similar decisions elsewhere in the UK.

However, this will not be end the of Dounreay.  Far from it.   The
decommissioning programme involves numerous hazardous projects and
dozens of new plants, all of which could present a threat to the
marine environment.

All the local authorities in the Highlands and Islands as well as
environmental groups and the Liberal and Scottish National Party parties
all favoured long-term storage.  Nordic countries were also consulted
by the UK and they also rejected reprocessing in favour of storage.
 Reprocessing the fuel would have meant the re-start of major
 environmental discharges.

If the reports are correct it would mean a significant shift in
government policy away from reprocessing - which has been supported
by both Conservative and Labour governments - in favour of storage
of spent fuel.  It would allow Dounreay to develop new skills and
techniques for long-term storage that could open the door to
similar work world-wide.

If the government does approve storage rather than reprocessing it will
reflect the environmental and financial weakness of the industry's argument
to spend millions of pounds to re-open the reprocessing plant.

The decision would also mean the end of reprocessing at Dounreay -
marking the end of two decades of opposition from the Highlands and
Islands and environmental and political groups.  It would mean the
closure of one of Europe's three commercial reprocessing plants and increase
the pressure on the UK's main reprocessing complex at Sellafield.

If the newspaper reports are correct it will not mean Dounreay will move
out of the national and international spotlight.  The GBP4 billion plus
decommissioning programme involves the construction of about the dozen
new plants, many of which will involve environmental discharges, and
several highly hazardous projects, such as emptying the controversial
waste shaft and high-level waste silos.  There is also the problem of
radioactive contamination of the seabed around Dounreay and the continued
discovery of radioactive particles around the complex and on the nearby
Sandside public beach.

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