RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL

HL Deb 22 June 1989 vol 509 cc411-2WA

Lord Jenkins of Putney

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will clarify the statement of Baroness Hooper of 14th April 1989 (Official Report, col. 531) that problems of radioactive waste disposal and management in the United Kingdom are no longer technical; and:—

1. (a) give examples of what was technical but is no longer so;
2. (b) state where the evidence that technical problems have been solved is to be found; and
3. (c) state what are the non-technical problems which remain to be solved.

The Minister of State, Department of the Environment (The Earl of Caithness)

It is the Government's policy that safe disposal routes will be developed in the UK for the disposal of radioactive waste. As a result of an extensive research programme we now have a better understanding of the underlying geology and the possible pathways of radioactivity back to man. The research programme is reviewed in the annual reports of the Government's Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee (RWMAC). Studies have shown that we have the technical ability to construct repositories. The adequacy of our scientific base has been endorsed by the House of Lords Select Committee on the European Communities, and the House of Commons Select Committee on the Environment, as well as RWMAC. It is also underpinned by a number of international scientific studies, and reflects the findings of the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency and the International Atomic Energy Agency, which have been published. Both the House of Lords Select Committee and the Environment Committee confirm that the problems we now face are of public understanding, confidence and trust.