Case Study Three - United Kingdom
Delivering Nuclear Site Cleanup in the United Kingdom
Thursday, November 16, 2023 | 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. (Pacific Time)
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The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) is responsible for the decommissioning and cleanup of legacy nuclear sites in the United Kingdom (UK). Its mission is to complete the cleanup of UK legacy nuclear sites and release them for beneficial reuse. This mission is complex, involving hundreds of facilities across 17 sites across the UK, and is expected to take over 100 years to complete and is estimated to cost in excess of £120 billion to deliver. This session will share some of the experience and learning that has been accumulated in the UK, and that is now informing the NDA’s national approach to delivering the remediation and cleanup of its sites.
Policy, Legislation, and Regulation
The challenges of delivering cleanup on nuclear sites compared to non-nuclear sites in the UK will be explored, and of working within a legislative and regulatory framework designed primarily for nuclear site operations rather than decommissioning and cleanup. It will provide the latest on developments in UK policy relating to decommissioning and the revised regulatory regime for final stage decommissioning and cleanup that the NDA has been helping to develop. These changes are looking to enable earlier delicensing than hitherto.
Site Case Studies
The approach NDA has taken to the determination of site end-states, working nationally and locally, will be illustrated through a range of case studies from across its sites. This will include the use of a component approach to help prioritize and focus cleanup work at Dounreay in Scotland, the consideration of on-site disposal at the Trawsfynydd site in Wales, and the challenges of determining the fate of off-site pipelines at Winfrith in England.
Timeline (Pacific Time)
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Presentation Title
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Presenter
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9:00 – 9:20 a.m.
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Welcome and Introduction to the UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority |
Juliet Long |
9:20–9:35 a.m.
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UK Policy - Recent Developments Toward Enabling Decommissioning and Sustainability |
Adam Draude |
9:35–9:50 a.m.
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Environmental Regulation of Nuclear Site Clean-Up |
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9:50–10:00 a.m.
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NDA Strategy: Focusing Our Efforts Towards Site End States |
Frank Wigley |
10:00–10:20 a.m.
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Dounreay: A Methodological Approach to Determining Site End-State Assumptions |
Alex Proverbio |
10:20–10:40 a.m.
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Trawsfynydd: Optimisation of End-States Through On-Site Disposal | Patrick Higgins |
10:40–11:00 a.m.
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Winfrith: Challenges in Determining the ‘End-State’ along Discharge Pipelines |
Ellanor Joyce |
11:00–11:15 a.m. |
BREAK |
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11:15–12:00 p.m. |
Panel Discussion: Delivering Successful Site End States |
Dounreay was the UK site for the development of fast reactor research from 1955 to 1994. It supported a Materials Test Reactor, 2 demonstration fast reactors, as well as nuclear fuel fabrication and reprocessing facilities. It also supported commercial MTR fuel reprocessing and fabrication around the world, resulting in a range of nuclear and non-nuclear legacies, including exotic fuels, nuclear materials, and historic ILW and LLW disposal facilities.
Trawsfynydd is a decommissioned Magnox reactor site located in Snowdonia National Park in central Wales. The plant, which became operational in 1965, was the only nuclear power plant to be built inland. It closed in 1991, and decommissioning was expected to take almost 100 years. A change in the NDA’s decommissioning strategy for its reactors now means that decommissioning is taking place at a greater pace than previously envisaged, and plans are now being explored for the development of the land adjacent to the site for a small modular reactor.
Winfrith was a center for nuclear research and development, opened in 1957. Activities on the site included the development of the prototype high gas-cooled reactor and the Steam Generating Heavy Water Reactor, which provided enough electricity to the National Grid to power a small town. Later the site also diversified into other disciplines, such as safety testing and oil exploration. Preparations are now starting for the removal of the Winfrith sea discharge pipeline – an underground sea discharge pipeline that is approximately 13km in length, 9km of which is terrestrial and 4 km of which is marine. Ongoing characterization work and landowner discussions will determine the final strategy for each section of the pipeline.
Biographies
Moderators
![]() Site Decommissioning and Remediation |
Juliet Long is the UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s chief strategist for Site Decommissioning and Remediation, leading national strategy development for the clean-up of the UK’s civil nuclear liabilities. She has over 25 years experience of working in the nuclear industry - as an operator, regulator, liability owner and in government.
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Frank Wigley UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority |
Frank Wigley is the remediation strategy manager at the UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.
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Speakers
Frank Wigley is the remediation strategy manager at the UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. Phil Matthews (panel member) is executive director of the UK’s Nuclear Legacy Advisory Forum, a special interest group of the UK’s Local Government Association. Phil is also a board member of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and a vice-president of GMF Europe. |