AN anti-nuclear group concerned over low-level radioactive contamination at Trawsfynydd Lake has criticised a recent government consultation as “too short, ill-timed, and clumsy.”
The consultation relates to proposals for changes to a permit concerning decommissioning work at the former Trawsfynydd nuclear power station. Natural Resources Wales (NRW) had called for opinions after Nuclear Restoration Services Limited (NRS) submitted an application to change its environmental permit.
The proposed work involves leaving low-level radioactive building waste in situ at the site, which closed in 1991.
As part of the application, NRS (formerly Magnox) plans the demolition, infilling, and capping of the Trawsfynydd Ponds Complex, a set of buildings running alongside the two reactor buildings.
The NRW website describes: “The cooling ponds and adjoining storage vaults have box-like below-ground structures with void spaces up to six metres deep, with a total volume of around 5,000 cubic metres. The proposed demolition of the above-ground concrete structures of the ponds complex will result in low-level radioactive material, mainly broken concrete, filling the void space. The material will then be closed in – a process known as capping.”
However, the Nuclear Free Local Authorities group, which opposes civil nuclear power, said it “remained fearful” over the potential for “low-level radioactive contamination at Trawsfynydd Lake.”
The group felt the four-week consultation, which ended on 6 August, did not allow sufficient time for responses, was unhappy that a fee had been charged for some documents, and noted delays. It highlighted that “a typical consultation period in the nuclear industry” is twelve weeks.
The NRW has responded, saying it still “welcomes correspondence and feedback” while it determines the application. It stated it is “committed to keeping the community and environment healthy” and noted it had only made a “small charge” for paper copies of documents.
The NFLA’s secretary, Richard Outram, told NRW: “A four-week consultation intended to solicit comments from the public and from civil society in the summer months is both too short and ill-timed. Many likely respondents will have insufficient time to become aware of the proposal, source and read the consultation documents, and formulate a response; more so in July–August, when many people take summer holidays, especially grandparents with school-age children.”
He added: “The NRW also made things worse by failing to publish all the documents relating to the consultation on their website; instead, interested parties had to ring or email a case officer to obtain them after an inevitable delay. Other enquirers reported to the NFLA Secretary that they had been informed there would be a charge for supplying the documents. Consequently, we described the consultation as ‘too short, ill-timed, and clumsy.’”
“Nuclear Restoration Services, which is responsible for decommissioning the former Trawsfynydd plant and safely dealing with the residual radioactive waste, is proposing to leave contaminated building rubble on site by burying it in the now redundant cooling pond complex and covering it with a concrete cap. The NFLA is concerned that this will prove an inadequate long-term solution.”
A spokesperson for Natural Resources Wales said: “We value the feedback following the formal consultation period for this permit variation application, which ran from 9 July to 6 August. We continue to welcome correspondence and feedback as we continue the determination of the application via [email protected] or 0300 065 3000.
“The most relevant documents were available online on our consultation hub, and the full set of technical documents could be made available online on request via our permitting team. There was a small charge for paper copies of the documents not hosted on our consultation hub.
“Previous consultations have been carried out by applicants Nuclear Restoration Services ahead of the application being submitted to NRW. As the regulator for this application, we are committed to keeping the community and environment healthy. We will be consulting with a range of experts, including those in Public Health Wales, throughout the application, which must meet our safety and environmental standards if it is to be approved. This includes considering all potential impacts on the local environment, including ground and surface water and Llyn Trawsfynydd.
“Once the determination stage is complete, we will communicate our draft decision, and there will be a further consultation at this stage.”
