This list of additional reading has been prepared by members of the South Copeland GDF Community Partnership, including NWS, and is based on topics raised by local residents. In this list we have focused on wider sources of information which are independent of NWS. It is not intended to be exhaustive and is simply a signpost to additional information for anyone interested in learning more.
The sources selected focus primarily on geological disposal and include resources on broader nuclear waste topics as useful background. The Partnership feels these links will help the local community gain a broader understanding of what a GDF could mean in South Copeland and the various factors to consider.
We will update this collection of sources as and when we find new information which responds to areas where the community have expressed a desire to know more and/or where we think this would be useful for the community.
Understanding Nuclear Waste
You can find descriptions of the main radioactive waste categories here: What are the main waste categories? | UK Radioactive Waste Inventory (UKRWI) (nda.gov.uk).
The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) produces a tri-annual inventory of nuclear waste in the UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-radioactive-waste-and-material-inventory-2022.
From this, Nuclear Waste Services (NWS) which is a limited company that forms a part of the NDA Group, produces the Inventory for Geological Disposal (IGD): 2019 Inventory for Geological Disposal – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). This Inventory provides estimates of what may eventually need to go into a GDF, and includes, for example, plutonium and spent fuel, which are not currently classified as “waste”, but might be in the future. The UK Government has ambitions for up to 24GW of new nuclear power, so the waste from this must also be considered in NWS’ plans and designs for a GDF.
The Society for Radiological Protection is the principal independent professional body for Radiation Protection in the UK. It provides a range of guides on understanding nuclear science: Welcome – The Society for Radiological Protection – SRP (srp-uk.org).
The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) is an intergovernmental agency that facilitates co-operation among countries with advanced nuclear technology infrastructures to seek excellence in nuclear safety, technology, science, environment and law: https://www.oecd-nea.org/jcms/j_6/home. There are a host of papers and reports published under each of these pages that people can get into on individual topics, for example, societal aspects and safety provisions of radioactive waste management.
Regulating the Nuclear Industry
The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) and the Environment Agency (EA) will review the designs for a GDF, the proposed site, and the science that informs them, to make sure it protects people and the environment.
The Environment Agency’s role in the regulation of a geological disposal facility for radioactive waste: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/regulating-the-geological-disposal-of-radioactive-waste-environmental-protection
The Office for Nuclear Regulation’s role in the regulation of a geological disposal facility for radioactive waste: https://www.onr.org.uk/our-work/what-we-regulate/sellafield-decommissioning-fuel-and-waste/decommissioning-fuel-and-waste/geological-disposal/
Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM)
Established in 2003 as a non-statutory advisory committee, CoRWM’s original purpose was to consider how to manage the UK’s higher activity radioactive waste in the long term, to protect people and the environment. It is jointly sponsored by and provides advice to the UK Government, the Scottish Government, the Welsh Government and the Northern Irish Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs. CoRWM is funded by the UK Government through the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. Its purpose is to provide independent scrutiny and evidence-based advice to the UK Government and the Devolved Administrations on issues that concern the management, storage and disposal of radioactive waste. Its remit covers radioactive waste arising from civil, and where relevant, defence nuclear programmes, together with material that could potentially be included in the inventory for disposal in a GDF but has not yet been declared a waste.
In July 2006, CoRWM reported to the UK Government:
- Geological disposal is the best available long-term solution
- Safe and secure interim disposal is needed in the meantime
- Further research and development is needed
This remains under review and remains the Committee’s position.
CoRWM continue to provide independent scrutiny and transparent advice to the UK governments on the long-term management of higher activity radioactive wastes. Their website provides a wealth of informed discussion and can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/committee-on-radioactive-waste-management
UK Government Policy
The UK Government’s working with communities policy for implementing geological disposal is set out in Appendix 1 of the Managing Radioactive Substances and Nuclear Decommissioning Policy Framework (May 2024): https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6632371769098ded31fca7c1/managing-radioactive-substances-and-nuclear-decommissioning-uk-policy-framework.pdf
Previous GDF processes
The two most relevant previous processes to South Copeland residents are the NIREX process of the 1980/90s and the Managing Radioactive Waste Safely (MRWS) process which ran from 2008-2013.
The MRWS process was the first process that included an element of community consent and the work carried out by the West Cumbria MRWS Partnership will be of most interest to residents of South Copeland. The West Cumbria MRWS Partnership had a website which holds extensive information about their work, including their review of the work carried out by NIREX: http://www.westcumbriamrws2013.info/documents.asp
International GDF programmes
Internationally, there is broad consensus that geological disposal is the safest way to deal with higher activity nuclear waste.
Other countries with GDF programmes have alternative approaches, that reflect their own experience, the inventory they are managing, as well as their governance and regulatory frameworks. They are also all at different stages in the process.
Below are links to some notable overseas GDF developers’ websites. Whilst not independent, they can make interesting comparisons with the UK approach. It may be worth completing further research on each of the programmes, to understand more about them and local community views.
Finland: https://www.posiva.fi/en/,
France: https://international.andra.fr/
Switzerland: https://nagra.ch/en/why-nagra/
Canada: https://www.nwmo.ca/en/Canadas-Plan/Canadas-deep-geological-repository
USA: The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) is the USA’s only repository for the disposal of transuranic waste generated by the defence industry (Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) | Department of Energy). Following the failed Yucca Mountain project, a Blue-Ribbon Commission was set up to review the USA’s policies for managing the end of the nuclear fuel cycle and to make recommendations. The Commission published its conclusions in 2012 and its final report can be viewed on the US Department of Energy (USDoE) website where you will also be able to access information on how the US DoE is taking forward the Commission’s recommendations: www.energy.gov
Sweden: https://skb.com/
Two summaries on international progress are the following, although they are now a few years old (2020). The first one is a short briefing: https://www.oecd-nea.org/jcms/pl_34611/final-disposal-of-radioactive-waste and the second one is the full report: https://www.oecd-nea.org/jcms/pl_32567/management-and-disposal-of-high-level-radioactive-waste-global-progress-and-solutions.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) provides a Global Overview of Radioactive Waste and Spent Fuel Management (2022): https://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/new-iaea-report-presents-global-overview-of-radioactive-waste-and-spent-fuel-management
Interest groups
The Nuclear Legacy Advisory Forum (NuLeAF) are the local government body for local authorities in England and Wales who host nuclear sites and/or have an interest in decommissioning and waste management and its impacts on their communities: https://www.nuleaf.org.uk/ The Nuclear Free Local Authorities https://www.nuclearpolicy.info/ are members of NuLeAF and hold a permanent position as one of the two Deputy Chairs.
NuLeAF are also connected into a wider international group, The Group of European Municipalities with Nuclear Facilities, for local government and communities with nuclear facilities, including those in decommissioning and waste management facilities: https://gmfeurope.org/
There are many other organisations offering advice on nuclear waste matters including, for example, Nuclear Waste Advisory Associates: http://www.nuclearwasteadvisory.co.uk/
Books
This is not a comprehensive list and does not reflect the views of the Community Partnership – they are simply books we have knowledge of and therefore wanted to share, as they may be of interest to you. Caution should be taken, as they could represent personal views, and books are published at a point in time, so they are more susceptible to being ‘out of date’.
‘Radioactivity A Very Short Introduction’ by Claudio Tuniz, Oxford University Press. An introduction to the complex topic of radioactivity. Provides understanding of the myriad ways in which radioactivity impacts our lives and might perhaps broaden perspective when approaching the topic of GDFs.
‘Nuclear Power A very Short Introduction’ by Maxwell Irvine, Oxford University Press. An introduction to the development civil nuclear power.
‘Nuclear Physics A very Short Introduction’ by Frank Close, Oxford University Press. A book explaining nuclear physics in laymen’s terms.
‘Too Hot to Touch, The problem of High Level Nuclear Waste’, by William M Alley and Rosemarie Alley, Cambridge University Press. This book largely focusses on the issues the Americans have had in building Geological Disposal Facilities at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. However, there is information about the history, successes and failures in dealing with nuclear waste in many countries, including the UK.
‘The Legacy of Nuclear Power’ by Andy Blowers. An account of the experience of communities associated with the nuclear industry in general, and the nature of finding long term solutions to nuclear waste.