United Kingdom’s nuclear waste progress described in report

Achievements: The NWS report lists the following items as the organization’s primary accomplishments for the 2023-2024 period:

• The safe and secure operation of the low-level waste repository in Cumbria, achieving an 18th consecutive Gold Award from The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents and with zero major safety incidents.
• Positive progress in delivering a geological disposal facility as the safe, secure, and long-term solution for the most hazardous radioactive waste. Three communities are engaging in the process and site evaluations are underway.
• Reusing or recycling waste where possible, diverting 98 percent of waste from disposal at the repository site in Cumbria. In the past year alone, the savings was nearly £60 million (about US$78 million)—on top of more than £900 million (about US$1.171 billion) saved over the past decade.
• Concluded a multi-year project to retrieve, transport, and emplace over a thousand treated radwaste storage drums.
• Working with the NDA and the wider nuclear sector to develop innovative ways to treat problematic wastes like asbestos and metals, and to harness new technologies such as thermal treatment.
• Recruiting more graduates and apprenticeships than ever before and supporting initiatives to develop a thriving national workforce of nuclear waste specialists.

Safety and security: Corhyn Parr, NWS chief executive officer, commented on the new report. “We’re making nuclear waste permanently safe, sooner—and by thinking differently about waste, harnessing new technologies, and creating new ways of working, we are delivering in a way that has safety and security at our core and offers true value for money. Working with our communities and stakeholders, we’re excited to build on the progress being made,” she said.