Chapelcross nuclear submarine waste storage discussed

Chapelcross is one of the sites being considered to store the waste from nuclear submarines

The prospect of the former power plant site at Chapelcross being used to store waste from nuclear submarines has been discussed in Annan.

The Dumfries and Galloway facility is on a provisional Ministry of Defence shortlist of five locations.

No decision will be made until after public consultation this year.

However, the issue was raised at a meeting of the Chapelcross Site Stakeholder Group (CSSG) to discuss the prospect of the Scottish site's use.

The MoD is looking for somewhere to store radioactive components until the 2040s when a permanent disposal facility is due to be ready.

The shortlisted sites are Capenhurst, Cheshire; Sellafield, West Cumbria; Aldermaston and Burghfield, Berkshire; and Chapelcross.

Ronnie Ogilvie, who chairs the CSSG, said there was not a great deal of detail to discuss at the moment.

He said it was clear that the site did have the storage capacity for low-level radioactive waste.

Mr Ogilivie said it was hoped more could be learned from forthcoming talks with military officials.

Decommissioning work is currently going on at the site near Annan.

It ceased power generation in 2004, with its landmark cooling towers later being pulled down.