By David Siddall

Last updated 16:03, Wednesday, 06 August 2008

A COPELAND councillor who represents the area targeted for a possible nuclear waste dump has said Cumbria’s image as an area of natural beauty was at risk from the ‘Energy Coast’ project.

Coun Brian Dixon who represents the area including the former Keekle Head opencast site, said he had not been informed about the approach by SITA UK to bury very low level nuclear waste in the abandonned opencast site.

He said on Friday: “I think the term Energy Coast really means the Nuclear waste Strategy Coast.” He said he had concerns about the potential impact on local communities and the reputation of Cumbria as an area of natural beauty if it was home to “an epidemic of nuclear waste sites.”

Defending the moves towards using Keekle Head, SITA UK’s Regional General Manager Phil Holland said: “I can confirm that we have had discussions with a range of organisations and the mines two present owners and also that we are investigating the potential for disposing of very low level radioactive waste on the Keekle Head site.

“Waste classed as ‘very low level radioactive’ includes construction waste created as facilities, such as office buildings, are demolished as part of the decommissioning process at the Sellafield site. This waste is appropriate for landfilling at facilities such as Keekle Head.

“Mining on the site has created a substantial void which is ideal for the disposal of waste materials. Our scheme would include early high quality restoration of parts of the site and after the landfilling is complete, final restoration as heathland.

“SITA UK is one of the country’s leading waste and recycling companies and is ideally placed to take on the challenges presented by this derelict site, which in its present state is a blot on the local landscape.

“Subject to planning approval, SITA UK would wish to create a state of the art facility at Keekle Head to dispose of very low level radioactive waste from Sellafield – and also dispose of non-hazardous waste from other sources.

“We believe that we have the technical ability and professional expertise to landfill and later restore Keekle Head to its original use as important heath land habitat”.

Pressure on space at the low-level nuclear waste site, Drigg is thought to behind the search for more sites in Cumbria to dump lower level waste.

SITA added: “The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority has announced that it is looking at fresh options for the disposal of very low level radioactive waste so that it doesn’t take up valuable space at the Low Level Waste Repository, near Drigg, which it intends to keep as the disposal site for other categories of radioactive wastes.”