Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 22 Jun 1994

Vol. 444 No. 2

Written Answers. - Sellafield Reprocessing Plant.

Ivor Callely

Question:

52 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications the British authorities' response to the Irish Government's request for the closure of Sellafield and for the stopping of expansion of their nuclear reprocessing; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications (Mr. Cowen)

The present Government and previous administrations have, for many years, been seeking the closure of the Sellafield reprocessing plant and a halt to expansion plans there. This culminated in two very detailed and wide-ranging submissions sent to the British authorities in 1993 by the Irish Government.

On 15 December 1993, the British Government granted the discharge authorisations to British Nuclear Fuels, BNFL, to allow the THORP plant to operate. At the time, the two British Ministers involved informed me that they were very conscious of their great personal responsibilities in arriving at their decision and both set aside a significant part of their time to consider with great care the points raised by the Irish Government in the two comprehensive submissions. They further told me that their decision was reached after long and detailed study of all the information and arguments received during the long consultation process. They concluded that the new discharge authorisations for Sellafield would ensure compliance with national and international limits and constraints and would not lead to unacceptable risks to human health or the environment. Nevertheless, having considered all submissions, the UK Ministers informed me that they had decided to impose a number of additional constraints and requirements on BNFL to ensure that all discharges from the site are minimised. They informed me that all their international commitments were carefully examined and concluded that all relevant obligations were respected.

Thomas P. Broughan

Question:

54 Mr. Broughan asked the Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications the latest information in the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland regarding atmospheric emissions from the Sellafield plant in Cumbria.

Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications (Mr. Cowen)

The Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland, with the assistance of the Meteorological Service, operates eight stations at which the levels of atmospheric radioactivity are measured. These eight stations, which are distributed around the country, operate on a continuous basis. The data from these monitoring stations indicate that the ambient levels of artificial radioactivity in the Irish atmosphere have not been elevated by the routine operation of the Sellafield or other nuclear plants.

The institute has, since late last year, been monitoring the atmospheric levels of Krypton 85 at its Dublin laboratory. Because nuclear fuel reprocessing is essentially the only atmospheric source of Krypton 85, and because it is released from reprocessing plants in relatively large quantities, this isotope acts as a sensitive indicator of atmospheric emissions from the Sellafield plant. The data from the Dublin measurement programme indicates that the levels in Dublin are in line with those expected in temperate latitudes of the northern hemisphere. No enhancement with respect to other monitoring stations in western Europe has been found. Any increases resulting from THORP coming into full operation will be monitored by the institute.

Actual levels of atmospheric discharges from the Sellafield plant are measured at each of the authorised discharge points at the Sellafield site by British Nuclear Fuels Limited, BNFL. The UK regulatory authorities require BNFL to publish this information annually. The institute has such information for 1992 — 1993 data are not yet available — and has incorporated it into a table which compares the levels of discharges since 1980. I will arrange to forward this information to the Deputy.

In general, according to the institute, the levels of discharge of gaseous radioisotopes such as tritium and krypton have remained relatively stable over the period, certain isotopes such as caesium and iodine, peaked in the late seventies and early eighties but since 1982 have been reduced considerably.