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The following information is based on the MRWS White Paper and information provided from Government departments.
What is a geological disposal facility?
Geological disposal involves putting radioactive waste deep inside a suitable rock formation to ensure that no harmful quantities of radioactivity ever reach the surface.
Waste would be placed in an engineered underground facility, which would use natural barriers (the geology) and man-made barriers (the waste containers and materials placed around the containers) to contain the radioactivity.
Government has said that building a geological disposal facility is their preferred approach to managing higher activity radioactive waste. This is supported by the Royal Society, The Royal Society of Chemistry and the Geological Society, and was based on recommendations from CoRWM. It is the approach being implemented by most countries with higher activity radioactive waste.
What would a geological disposal facility look like?
The actual design of a facility would be developed as the Government Managing Radioactive Waste Safely (MRWS) programme moves forward. However it is likely that:
• The facility would have buildings above the ground (for example, for facilities such as workshops and admin offices) as well as the underground vaults
• The underground vaults and tunnels would probably be excavated at a depth somewhere between 200 and 1000 metres (depending on the geology of the site)
• The facility would probably extend underground over an area of several square kilometres.
What waste would be put into a geological disposal facility?
There are different levels of radioactive waste. In this search the Government is aiming to find a geological disposal facility for the country’s higher activity waste, which includes higher level waste, intermediate level waste, and a small fraction of low level waste. Some of this waste already exists, and some will come from the operation and decommissioning of existing nuclear facilities.
The facility could potentially also take waste from any new nuclear power stations that are to be developed and any nuclear materials that are declared waste in the future.
What are the timescales for the development of a facility?
The process to find, construct and begin operation of a geological disposal facility is a long one, which will be driven by discussions with local communities, as well as rigorous technical investigations of potential sites. No one can be exact, but it is likely to be around two to three decades from the beginning of the site selection process to when a facility can receive the first waste, wherever it is in the UK.
Is safety being addressed?
Safety is the overriding issue in this process. Local communities, planning authorities and nuclear regulators will need to have their safety concerns sufficiently addressed long before any geological disposal facility could start being built.
What are the costs and benefits to a community that hosts the facility?
It is too early to say exactly what benefits or negative impacts there might be for the community that hosts the geological disposal facility. However, some might include:
Potential benefits:
• Jobs from construction work
• Jobs during site operation
• Investment from Government for long term improvements in the area
Potential negative Impacts:
• The impact of construction on the community and its transportation links
• Concerns about the safety of a facility
• A negative perception of the area hosting the facility
One of the roles of the local councils and the Partnership is to look into these potential benefits and negative impacts with Government, before a decision is taken to move to the next stage or not.
freephone - 0800 048 8912 email - contact@westcumbriamrws.org.uk
