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Yesterday's BBC article on Cumberland Council's report saying the Magnox Silo leaks are 'slowing down' is illustrated with an image of the Fellside fossil fuel gas plant at Sellafield rather than the Magnox Silos. The article and Cumberland Council portray the issue of the leaking silos in a very optimistic light. In 2021 Sellafield placed an advert "seeking ideas, innovations and technologies that will deliver game changing solutions to prevent or minimise leaks from the Magnox Swarf Storage Silo (MSSS) Compartments 1 - 6." The advert went on to say:
"Current leak rates are circa 1.5 – 2.5 m3/d. It is desirable to reduce these as much as possible. At present, it is not possible to determine with certainty the precise location of the leak, or indeed the silo or silos (of the 6) that is leaking." 2.5 m³ = 660.430131 gal.
In other words nearly 700 gallons a day of radioactively contaminated liquids are leaking into the ground and have been doing so for decades and are likely to do so for decades more. The Magnox Silos are embedded 6 metres into the ground. This must have seemed like a brilliant state of the art idea at the time but burial of the radioactive wastes in the silos largely underground is the very reason why the ongoing "historic" leaks cannot be found and stopped.
There are many reasons a deep nuclear dump under the sea (euphemstically called a Geological Disposal Facility) is a dangerous plan. The existing and ongoing nuclear contamination of the Lake District coast by the Magnox silos and other accidental and routine emissions from Sellafield, is one of them. Should a deep nuclear dump leak there is no baseline of a clean environment to take readings from. Should the deep nuclear dump leak before or after capping the authorities could point, as they do now, to "historic discharges,"
If the UK government and the nuclear industry are hell bent on a deep nuclear dump (which would be dangerous anywhere even with the "right geology") then the Lake District coast should be the last place to put it for reasons of monitoring and for any semblence of morality.
Cumberland Council have learnt nothing from the 6m deep leaking Magnox silos or from the NIREX inquiry of the 1990s. This is the full Council Report into the leaking silos which actually ends up with promoting the "Journey to GDF"
Yeah right - GDFOFF!!
This is the full Cumberland Council document..
1.1. Magnox Swarf Storage Silo: Progress being made across three main work areas of (i)
care and surveillance of the facility (ii) installing additional retrieval capability and (iii)
retrieving waste. Work to mitigate leak from original building continues in accordance
with commitments agreed with the Environment Agency, including installation of multi-
point sampling wells (the first of their type in the UK). Monitoring confirms a slight
reduction in the rate of the leak. SL has now reviewed and revised its overall plan for
carrying out waste retrievals at the MSSS facility to provide for earlier removal of waste
from the original building so the pond affected by the leak can be drained sooner. The
first silo emptying machine (SEP2) is already in operation. The second machine (SEP1)
has been assembled and is now being commissioned with a view to being installed and
operational in MSSS by 2026. The building is also being prepared to enable installation
of the third and final silo emptying machine (target date 2030). Whilst SEP2 has been
largely reliable, issues with the cranes on the facility have impacted retrieval operations to
date and a crane improvement plan has now been developed to resolve these issues and
support the transition to sustained high rates of waste retrieval from MSSS. It is hoped
retrievals will reach circa 600 skips per year once all three silo emptying machines are in
operation and the new Box Encapsulation Plant is available to receive the waste. Board
members can find further information and videos about the MSSS retrievals project here
on the Gov.UK website and this separate page with a video from 2021 showing SEP2
being moved from Compartment 6 into its current position over Compartment 10.
1.2. First Generation Magnox Storage Pond: Since commencing export of zeolite skips from
the pond in March, a total of 10 skips have now been sent to the Interim Storage Facility.
Retrievals operations are slightly behind schedule for the first third of the year due to
ongoing problems with the skip handler machine. SL is now exploring options for how to
continue exports when the skip handler is down. Work continues to crop waste items in
the pond bays and install a new high performance pump to remove sludge.
1.3. Pile Fuel Storage Pond: Progress on removing the waste inventory from the oldest
legacy pond continues, although retrievals have been hindered so far this year by poor
pond visibility and an issue with the skip wash machine. The safety case for divers to
conduct a second campaign later this year has been approved, following on from the work
they did at the beginning of 2023. They will be continuing work in Bays 11 and 12 to
remove waste and debris using handheld pickers and a new hydraulic sludge removal
suction tool. Their main objective is to get the Bays clean enough so the door between
the bays can be lowered - a key enabler for future dewatering of the Bays. Next steps
towards dewatering the bays include developing:
• New techniques for casting underwater concrete so relevant parts of the bay floor can
be coated to help protect workers once the water is removed.
• A water level management system allowing the bay to be emptied in controlled
incremental phases.
• New techniques for shielding the bay’s walls once the water is lowered.
1.4. Pile Fuel Cladding Silo: Having successfully filled the first waste box in August 2023 and
consigned it to BEPPS (Box Encapsulation Plant Product Store) in December 2023,
retrievals are still yet to recommence due to damage done to the hydraulic hoses on the
waste retrievals crane during its installation. All four hoses need to be replaced in a
confined space where workers use breathing apparatus. SL continues to review whether
the system installed will be robust enough to sustain a move to full retrieval operations.
1.5. Legacy ponds & silos: SL has now submitted to the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR)
its application to use Self Shielded Boxes to store fuel and fuel-bearing material. Subject
to permission being granted by ONR, this will be an important step as it will provide an
additional route for exporting fuel and increase options for longer term storage.
1.6. Highly Active Liquid Waste Vitrification Plant: Vitrification Line 1 – in planned outage.
Return to service in December. Vitrification Line 2 – line in rebuild. Vitrification Line 3 –
line rebuild nearing completion. Return to service scheduled for mid-September. 65
units/waste containers filled and placed in store so far this year. 158 year end forecast.
1.7. High Hazard Reduction/Remediation: Pile 1 Chimney dismantling: assembly of the
mobile demolition platform continues at Leconfield Industrial Estate. Windscale AGR
Turbine Hall demolition: construction of new controlled area entrance facility has
commenced. Calder Hall: the old administration building has now been demolished.
Asbestos contractor has been mobilised in advance of floor plate lifting for an asbestos
and condition survey of Reactors 1 and 4. Work continues on the plan to demolish the
Turbine Hall and 2 blower houses, to make way for new high hazard reduction support
facilities. First Generation Magnox Reprocessing Plant: removal and size reduction of the
plant conveyor’s transfer bogie has been completed marking the start of the first phase of
equipment removal. Chemical disposals: loading and dispatch to off-site disposal facility
continues. Waste Compaction Plant: 719 compacted drums against an accumulated
target of 1600. Special Nuclear Materials: the last can of special nuclear material has
been safely removed from Store 17. The project, which started in 2015, has seen 454
cans successfully repacked into modern containers and removed to a more secure,
purpose built store, resulting in a significant risk reduction achievement for the site.
1.8. VRR (Vitrified Residue Returns) programme: Preparations continue ahead of the
second return to Germany scheduled for early 2025. All 7 transport flasks have now been
successfully packaged and are in interim storage on the Sellafield site, with 28 containers
placed in each flask. Preparations for the third German shipment in 2026 are also
underway. 7 empty flasks have been delivered to Sellafield site with packaging due to
commence later this year. Each flask will again contain 28 containers.
1.9. Media activity / Stakeholder issues: While The Guardian’s Sellafield investigation
remains open, coverage has reduced significantly, and SL is not aware of any active lines
of inquiry. SL continues to seek opportunities to engage proactively with the media to build
more positive portrayals of the Sellafield mission. Sellafield featured in a BBC TV, radio,
and online news report on the UK’s approach to radioactive waste management,
broadcast on 9 September.
2. Low Level Waste Repository
2.1. Regulatory Matters: On 1 April, LLW Repository Ltd (LLWR) and Radioactive Waste
Management (RWM) officially became a single legal entity, Nuclear Waste Services Ltd.
2.2. Capping Project: NWS has now formally responded to the Environment Agency’s
Warning Letter and Radioactive Substances Compliance Assessment Report (RASCAR)
of earlier this year which raised concerns about the rate of progress with plans for capping
the Repository site. Graham Construction Ltd have been appointed as the main
contractor to carry out the Southern Trench Interim Membrane (STIM) replacement and
associated works with physical works due to start in February 2025. The project involves
installing a replacement membrane over parts of the trenches and is designed to protect
the waste until the final cap is progressively installed in future years. The STIM project is
expected to cost up to £67 million and to take four years to complete.
3. Geological Disposal Facility Programme
3.1. In July, the Nuclear Portfolio Holder wrote to the Chairs of the two GDF Community
Partnerships to express appreciation and support for the work Partnership members are
doing to engage with local communities about the GDF project as they commence work to
prepare Community Visions for the two Search Areas. The letters are attached as
background documents to this report.
3.2. Two new NWS videos are now available on YouTube: one on geology providing
information about the work being carried out to evaluate the geology located beneath the
inshore area off West Cumbria and one about the Journey to GDF providing an overview
of the different stages of the site evaluation process. NWS has also published a Property
Value Protection scheme designed to support those who could be affected by the siting
process for a Geological Disposal Facility.
3.3. The Community Partnerships are engaging with residents to inform production of
Community Visions for the Search Areas. Community Visions will provide important
evidence about what types of projects and schemes local people might want to see funded
by the Significant Additional Investment that the Government’s GDF siting policy makes
clear will be made available to the community that hosts a GDF. Engagement methods
being deployed include visioning workshops (for information see the summary of
outcomes attached as a background document to this Report), attending local shows
and online questionnaires with the aim of ensuring anyone who wants to contribute views
has the opportunity to do so. Further rounds of engagement are in progress with a view to
having draft Community Visions ready to share with people in the first quarter of 2025.
3.4. The NWS engagement team continues its own separate engagement work with
communities outside the two Search Areas - next event scheduled for 28 September at
the Beacon Portal, Whitehaven. Aerial surveys off the coast continue to capture
information on the presence and numbers of birds and marine wildlife in the area helping
to provide necessary baseline environmental data. Cumberland Council Report to Nuclear Issues Board meeting to take place 20th September -opens as PDF
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