Sellafield nuclear site under investigation

THE UK’S biggest nuclear waste dump faces an inquiry by the National Audit Office (NAO) over its soaring costs and safety record.

The public spending watchdog has said it wants to examine whether Sellafield in Cumbria is “managing and prioritising the risks and hazards of the site effectively in the short and long term”.

An NAO statement said: “Cleaning up the site is a long-term endeavour, likely to last well into the next century. It is expected to cost £84bn, though this cost estimate is highly uncertain.”

Sellafield stores and treats nuclear waste from weapons programmes and power generation. The site comprises more than 1,000 buildings and has about 81,000 tons of radioactive waste in storage. This is expected to rise to 3.3m tons over the coming years.

About 2,000 tons comprise high level waste – the most toxic – including around 140 tons of plutonium in what is the world’s largest stockpile. The site employs about 11,000 people and cost the taxpayer some £2.5bn last year.

Scrutiny of its budget and safety record comes after a series of critical reports in The Guardian, with allegations ranging from lax cyber security to a poor work culture. The Government, which ultimately controls Sellafield, has defended the site’s operations, insisting there is “no elevated risk to public safety as result of the issues reported”.

An NA O spokesman said it had reported regularly on Sellafield, most recently in 2018 and the findings of the latest investigation would be published in the autumn.

Sellafield is the largest of 17 nuclear sites nationwide that need cleaning up.

A key problem is that it has no way of permanently storing nuclear waste.

Safe storage is essential because much nuclear waste remains dangerously radioactive for thousands or even millions of years.