News : Underground disposal of radioactive waste community events to tour Cumbria
A series of community events that aim to help people understand the issues surrounding potential underground disposal of radioactive waste in
The 12 events, organised by the West Cumbria Managing Radioactive Waste Safely Partnership, will be held at various locations around the county and form part of a wider programme of consultation, which is due to run until March 23.
The drop-in events will be attended by Partnership members and technical experts from the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA), the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC), as well as regulators, the Office for Nuclear Regulation and the Environment Agency. There will also be an independent geologist attending the events.
The events also include discussion sessions where people can explore and debate views on particular issues.
There will be events at The Network Centre in Millom on Wednesday, January 18 the Civic Hall in Whitehaven on Thursday, January 19; the Village Hall in Gosforth on Friday, January 20; the Town Hall in Kendal on Monday, January 23; the Carnegie Arts Centre in Workington on Tuesday, January 24; St Herbert’s Centre in Keswick on Wednesday, January 25; the
Councillor Elaine Woodburn, leader of Copeland Borough Council, said: “These events are a good opportunity for members of the public to find out more about this very important process. There will be experts who they can speak to as well as documents and information available to read.
“If West Cumbria decides to take part in the Government’s search for a suitable site for a repository it will have impacts for many generations into the future so we would like everyone to get clued up about what is happening and let us know their views. These events are a great way for people to do that.”
The Partnership, which is made up of representatives of all the local authorities in the county as well as organisations such as the National Farmers’
The Partnership has published a consultation document stating its initial opinions on a range of issues such as geology, safety, what would go into a repository, what impacts a repository might have for the area and what additional benefits there might be.
The public are being asked to read the full consultation document – which is available for download from the Partnership’s website at www.westcumbriamrws.org.uk and can be ordered by calling Freephone 0800 0488912, or by emailing contact@westcumbriamrws.org.uk – and to let the Partnership know their thoughts and comments. There is also a shorter Overview document available and a DVD. The consultation document and DVD will also be available at the community events.
At the end of the public consultation a large representative opinion poll will be conducted to gauge public opinion in
These views will then be taken into consideration when the Partnership finalises its report to send to the three local authorities that will make a formal decision about whether to take part in the search for a site – Allerdale Borough Council, Copeland Borough Council and Cumbria County Council. All the views submitted to the consultation and the results of the survey will also be provided to the Councils who will take the formal decision later in 2012.
If the area does decide to participate, it could withdraw at any point in the future until work begins to build a repository. It would take around 15 years to find a suitable site following extensive testing of geology and other factors.
For more information about the Partnership and the issues please visit the Partnership’s website.
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For media enquiries please contact the Partnership’s communications advisor Paul Gardner or Ian Boydon at Osprey Communications on 01524-782086 or 077667906561
1. The Chair of Partnership rotates between the three principle authorities on the Partnership – Allerdale Borough Council, Copeland Borough Council and Cumbria County Council.
2. In addition to Allerdale Borough Council, Copeland Borough Council and Cumbria County Council there are a range of other organisations making up the Partnership, including Barrow Borough Council, local trade unions, the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), Churches Together Council, Eden District Council, South Lakeland District Council, Carlisle City Council, the Lake District National Park Authority, the Cumbria Association of Local Councils, NuLeAF (the Nuclear Legacy Advisory Forum), the Cumbria Chamber of Commerce and Cumbria Tourism.
3. A number of other organisations attend as ‘observing members’ including Government departments, the Isle of Man Government, CoRWM (Committee on Radioactive Waste Management), the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and the safety and environment regulators.
4. The Government is looking for a community in the