Ritchie calls for ‘thorough’ Sellafield decommissioning programme

SDLP South Down MP Margaret Ritchie has repeated her calls for a thorough decommissioning programme for the Sellafield Nuclear site.

Ritchie said that a series of deeply concerning safety problems resulting in the British Government dismissing the consortium that had been running the facility for the last six years has left the public vulnerable and in need of answers.

She said, “The incredible situation at Sellafield is, at best, an embarrassment for the nuclear industry and, at worst, a highly dangerous public safety concern.

“Discharge from the site poses specific risks to communities along the east coast of Ireland and I have campaigned over the last number of months and years for a through decommissioning and safety programme for the plant.

“Recent discoveries of large cracks in concrete tanks surrounding volatile nuclear waste storage ponds and wildlife resting in the ponds were deeply disturbing. The site is decaying and the consortium itself admitted that conditions are ‘extraordinarily vulnerable’.

She added, “That must be addressed immediately with a transparent decommissioning plan. The National Audit Office considers that the current state of the site poses significant risks to people and the environment. These issues must be addressed before irreparable damage is done and a serious accident happens.”

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Posted by Newry Times News on Jan 29 2015. Filed under Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry