The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority

Substantial savings are set to be made across the nuclear industry by switching from road to rail for the focus of low-level radioactive waste transports. 

In a recent trial at the NDA's Bradwell site in Essex, four half-height containers were successfully loaded onto a single train and transported to the Low Level Waste Repository (LLWR) near Drigg, Cumbria. 

The normal means of transport would have been four separate journeys, using specialist transporters travelling hundreds of miles by road to the LLWR. 

However, by using spare rail capacity allocated to nuclear rail freight specialist Direct Rail Services (DRS), an NDA subsidiary, the costs are marginal while the reduction in road traffic and carbon emissions is of both safety and environmental benefit. 

For sites without a rail head, a combination of road and rail could be used, providing an integrated service for all sites that need waste transport. 

It is estimated that the new service will save 72% in carbon dioxide emissions and reduce road miles travelled by 64%. 

The trial was led by LLWR which offers a transport service to all UK nuclear customers as part of its remit on implementing the UK's LLW Strategy, and involved collaboration with Bradwell site operator Magnox, Sellafield, Inutec Ltd, Research Sites Restoration Ltd (RSRL) and NDA. 

Across the entire UK nuclear industry, LLWR estimates that there are around 300 journeys taking place each year at a cost of approx £500,000. This is set to increase over the coming years as sites begin to demolish facilities and deal with the resulting waste – largely low-level material such as building rubble. 

The success of the Bradwell trial also paves the way for greater use of rail for a wider range of lower-activity wastes, with the service being made available for commercial customers as well as the NDA estate from 1 April 2012. Further details of this will be available in the near future. 

The opportunity arose through DRS's unused capacity - in the form of routes, locomotives, rolling stock, transport hubs and staff – within existing contracts that support the Magnox and EDF spent fuel programmes, where flasks are transported by rail to Sellafield for reprocessing.    

Joanne Van Straaten, National Programme Delivery Manager for Waste, said:

"The savings are very real, both in terms of costs for the taxpayer and the environment. In addition, there are very real opportunities to widen this service and look at transporting construction material, for example, to new build sites, or, further into the future, to transport Intermediate Level Waste (ILW) from stores to the Geological Disposal Facility (GDF)." 

Jo added that the Bradwell trial had involved half-height ISO containers, however, and DRS's recent investment in lowliner rail wagons would allow full-height containers to be used across the rail network, transporting larger waste items.