Nuclear fuel is fabricated from natural uranium imported from overseas by BNFL who operate a fuel fabrication plant at Springfields near Preston and a uranium enrichment plant at Capenhurst in Cheshire. Natural uranium is composed largely of two elements Uranium 235 (U-235) and Uranium 238 (U-238). Whilst this is suitable for making fuel for Britain's ageing Magnox reactors, it has to be enriched before it can made into fuel for the newer advanced Gas-Cooled Reactors (AGRs).
Greenpeace today welcomed the news that British Energy, which manages most of the UK's nuclear power plants, has called for an end to nuclear reprocessing at British Nuclear Fuels' Sellafield plant
Today's response by BNFL to February's three damning inspectors' reports on Sellafield is woefully inadequate, Greenpeace said. The environmental group highlighted the continuing threat to human health and the environment from BNFL's nuclear reprocessing plant and BNFL's failure to address fundamental production and quality control problems.
Greenpeace was responding to BNFL's Chief Executive, Norman Askew, who today announced a major management restructuring and a two-year action plan called "Going Forward Safely".
A leaked Nuclear Energy Agency report, released today by Greenpeace, contains key evidence which supports Denmark's international initiative to end nuclear reprocessing.
"The industry's own figures prove that Denmark is right to claim that ending reprocessing immediately at Sellafield and La Hague is feasible and would stop the main sources of nuclear pollution," said Greenpeace scientist Dr Helen Wallace, "It is a scandal that this report has been kept hidden for so long."
Greenpeace welcomed today's announcement by German Environment minister Juergen Trittin, that Germany will ban imports of plutonium fuel (MOX) from Britain until it was satisfied with Sellafield's safety standards, as "a good first step to ending Britain's plutonium trade for good".
"BNFL's dreams of a plutonium empire have collapsed," said Greenpeace nuclear campaigner Helen Wallace, "It's time for Tony Blair to bite the bullet and recognise that reprocessing and Mox production are dead-end technologies being promoted by dead-beat company."
Swiss nuclear regulatory officials are today visiting British Nuclear Fuels Ltd's (BNFL) Sellafield site in north-west England, to check on safety data for nuclear fuel exported to Switzerland.
The visit follows today's reported resignation of BNFL chief executive John Taylor, following the scandal surrounding the falsification of nuclear fuel safety data for plutonium uranium oxide (MOX) fuel sent to Japan and Germany. Switzerland is the only customer continuing to use BNFL MOX fuel.
Greenpeace nuclear campaigner Helen Wallace said, "BNFL's plutonium business is dangerous, polluting and unnecessary whoever is at the helm. A new captain alone cannot save a ship that is heading for the rocks. The Government must chart a new course for BNFL by ending Britain's plutonium trade for good."
Summary A summary of statements from the BNFL Environment, Health & Safety Report 1998/99, "Responsible for safety and care for the environment", and the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII) Investigation of Sellafield (6-27 September 1999), published February 2000.
18th February, 2000 - Greenpeace today urged the Government to end nuclear reprocessing and refuse BNFL permission to further commercially develop 'MOX' nuclear fuel following a series of highly critical reports into BNFL's Sellafield site, issued by the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII).
The three reports examined site safety at Sellafield, problems surrounding storage of high level radioactive waste on the site and BNFL's falsification of safety data for plutonium fuel (MOX) sent to Japan.
