Catalogue of safety breaches at UK's nuclear base
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
London, Apr 27, IRNA – Britain's nuclear submarine fleet has been hit by a series of serious safety breaches involving repeated leaks of radioactive waste, broken pipes and waste tanks at its home base in Scotland, according to a confidential report.
The 400-page internal report, released under the Freedom of Information Act, admits a catalogue of safety failures at Faslane naval base, the home of Britain’s Trident nuclear deterrent, saying they were a "recurring theme" and ingrained in the base's culture.
The worst breaches include three leaks of radioactive coolant from nuclear submarines in 2004, 2007 and 2008 into the Firth of Clyde on the west coast of Scotland. Two radioactive waste tanks were found to be a "significant" and "growing" radiation hazard and needed to be taken out of service.
The revelations in the report, obtained by Channel Four News, are so serious that it has led to the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (Sepa) warning that it would consider closing the base down if it had the legal powers to do so.
Britain’s Ministry of Defence is legally exempt from the civil radioactive safety regulations, but Sepa said it was pressing for powers to inspect and control Faslane's nuclear operations.
"It is not acceptable simply to say these incidents were minor. We need to make sure they have the systems in place to prevent any incidents happening, so that we don't have to worry whether the potential consequences are serious or not," said Sepa's chief executive Campbell Gemmell.
Campbell told Channel Four News that a civil nuclear station guilty of these breaches would face temporary closure.
The report comes at a time when the British government is pressing ahead with controversial plans to replace its Trident nuclear missile system despite accusations that it would breach its commitment to disarm under the Non-Proliferation Treaty.
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