The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency is currently investigating a leak on the site of the former Dounreay Nuclear Power Station in Caithness Although the power station is decommissioned and is currently being demolished it is demonstrating just how dangerous nuclear sites can be and just how difficult cleaning up contaminated sites can be.
Radioactive liquid effluent is understood to have leaked inside a treatment facility.
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) said the leak was minor and did not get outside the plant. Its quite a small plant when compared with modern installations but there can still be dangers it it leaks out and people are exposed. I remember several years back when the site was first being decomissioned, they had disposed of waste rather hurriedly by chucking it down a mineshaft.
Although it was not at that time supposed to be high level waste and was apparently gloves and protective clothing and other litter, but they had sealed and capped the dump and as organic stuff rotted down, gas pressure built up and eventually an explosion blew the top off it. It was one of the first examples which demonstrated that disposing of nuclear waste was neither practical nor safe and consequently very expensive.
Dounreay Site Restoration Limited (DSRL) said that nobody was put at risk by the incident but SEPA has launched an investigation. Dounreay is currently undergoing a £2.6bn decommissioning process but a lot more will need to be spent before the site can be in any way described as safe.
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