[ RadSafe ] [Fwd: [srp] Radioactive waste at royals' beach]

[Marcel Schouwenburg]

News from the UK!

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Guardian reports Radioactive waste at royals' beach

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,3604,1437826,00.html

Radioactive waste has been discovered near a favourite holiday haunt  of
Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles, the late Queen Mother's 
Scottish home, the Castle of Mey.
The waste was discovered on the third day of a 60-day survey of
local beaches by the Scottish environment protection agency (Sepa)  after
growing concern about illegal discharges from the closed
Dounreay fast-breeder reactor in Caithness.

Dounreay is facing prosecution for illegally discharging nuclear
waste into the sea and the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority  has
admitted that at least 1,000 particles have been washed ashore  and has no
idea how many may be on the seabed.

The discovery on Dunnet beach, near the Queen Mother's former home, 
follows a campaign by a local estate owner, Geoffrey Minter, to
expose what believes is a "cover-up" by the atomic energy authority  on
the scale of the problem. Since he bought the estate, which
includes a popular public beach, Sandside, 54 particles have been  washed up.

A recent request under the Freedom of Information Act exposed that  other
finds had not been reported by Dounreay at the time. The new  find is
further down the coast and has been sent to Dounreay for
examination.

The radioactive object was the size of a thumbnail and had been
contaminated by caesium-137, a component of nuclear fuel. Warning  signs
have been put up around the beach. Similar signs have had to  be erected
around Sandside beach.

The disclosure came as the energy minister, Mike O'Brien, admitted  that
safety standards at Dounreay had been unacceptable and that
measures taken to deal with nuclear waste had been ineffective in 
protecting the environment.

Mr O'Brien's admission came in reply to Iain Duncan Smith, the
former Conservative leader, who is pressing for a full ministerial 
statement on Dounreay and a public inquiry into the plant's safety 
record.
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Marcel Schouwenburg
RadSafe moderator & list owner