§ Gregory BarkerTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent representations her Department has received concerning the adequacy of security provision in the event of(a) an accident and (b) a terrorist attack involving the transportation of nuclear waste in (i) an urban and (ii) a rural environment. [69137]
§ Mr. WilsonThe Department has received a large volume of representations from hon. Members, their constituents and others over safety and security in the civil nuclear industry, including the transport of nuclear material in all environments, in the period since the attacks in the United States on 11 September 2001.
§ Gregory BarkerTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many tonnes of nuclear waste was imported and reprocessed in the UK in each year since 1997; and what the projected amount is in(a) 2002, (b) 2003 and (c) 2004. [69037]
§ Mr. WilsonThe United Kingdom does not allow the import of "nuclear waste". Spent nuclear fuel belonging to overseas owners is imported for reprocessing in the UK. Details of fuel deliveries and the programming of reprocessing fuel owned by individual customers are operational and commercial matters for BNFL and its customers. It can be noted, however, that BNFL published in 1993 a document setting out the economic and commercial justification for THORP. This included details of the amounts of fuel contracted for reprocessing during the baseload period of THORP's operation. From this it can be seen that the total amount of overseas owned fuel to be reprocessed during that period is 4,547 tonnes.
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§ Gregory BarkerTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much nuclear waste was(a) generated and (b) reprocessed within the UK in each year since 1997. [69034]
§ Mr. WilsonRadioactive waste is defined as
any material which contains or is contaminated by radionuclides and for which no use is foreseen".Such waste is conditioned for long-term storage. Information on the amount of radioactive waste that is held in the UK and also on predicted future arisings of such waste is published every three years by DEFRA and NIREX Ltd. in the National Radioactive Waste Inventory. The most recent inventory was published in 1999. A copy is in the Libraries of the House. An updated edition of the inventory is due for publication later this year. Reprocessing is an activity carried out in order to recover reusable materials from spent nuclear fuel and to separate out the waste contained in the spent fuel. Radioactive waste is not reprocessed. Details of annual throughput at the reprocessing plants at Sellafield are an operational and commercial matter for BNFL.
§ Gregory BarkerTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many tonnes of nuclear waste were transported by rail in the UK in each year since 1997; and what was(a) the source and (b) the destination of the waste. [69135]
§ Mr. WilsonI am assuming the question relates to movements by rail of spent nuclear fuel discharged from UK nuclear power stations. Spent nuclear fuel from the UK's Magnox and Advanced Gas Cooled Reactor power stations is routinely transported by rail to the Sellafield site in Cumbria for reprocessing. The power stations that are the source of the spent fuel are situated throughout Great Britain.
The total volume of spent fuel that is transported in any given year would depend entirely on operational factors. Such transports are undertaken by Direct Rail Services (DRS), BNFL's rail freight subsidiary. DRS does not collate information on the total tonnage of fuel that is transported each year. To try to obtain the information requested from the records held at the power stations and Sellafield would involve disproportionate time and cost.
§ Gregory BarkerTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps her Department has taken to(a) review and (b) increase security measures for (i) nuclear facilities and (ii) transportation of nuclear materials including (A) MOX plutonium and (B) nuclear waste following the terrorist attacks on 11 September 2001. [69138]
§ Mr. WilsonThe DTI's Office for Civil Nuclear Security (OCNS), the security regulator, sets stringent standards for security at nuclear sites and for the security of nuclear material during transportation. Security precautions are kept under regular review and have been reviewed in the light of the terrorist attacks in the USA on 11 September 2001. Security has been enhanced since the events of 11 September. It is not Government policy to disclose details of these security arrangements.
§ Gregory BarkerTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent representations her Department has received concerning the length of time a786W train carrying nuclear waste may safely be left stationary and the (a) environmental and (b) health implications if this time scale is exceeded. [69041]
§ Mr. WilsonNone.
§ Gregory BarkerTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what security measures are employed, and at what cost, during the transportation of nuclear waste within the UK. [69133]
§ Mr. WilsonSecurity measures for nuclear material during transportation are regulated by the DTI's Office for Civil Nuclear Security (OCNS), the security regulator. It is not Government policy to disclose details of security measures taken in connection with nuclear material. The costs of security measures are met by the operators.