Editing Sellafield (section)

==Site development==
===Royal Ordnance Factory===
The site was established with the creation of [[Royal Ordnance Factory]] '''ROF Sellafield''' by the Ministry of Supply in 1942; built by [[John Laing Group|John Laing & Son]]<ref>Ritchie, p. 102</ref> at the hamlet of Low Sellafield.<ref>{{PastScape |num=1075104 |desc=Royal Ordnance Factory Sellafield |access-date=21 August 2015}}</ref> The nearby sister factory, ROF Drigg, had been constructed in 1940, {{convert|3|mi|km|0}} to the south-east near the village of Drigg.<ref>{{PastScape |num=1075121 |desc=Royal Ordnance Factory Drigg |access-date=21 August 2015}}</ref> Both sites were classed as [[Explosive ROF]]s, producing high-explosive at ROF Drigg, and propellant at [[ROF Sellafield]]. They were built in this location to be remote from large centres of population because of the hazardous nature of the process, and to reduce the risk of [[World War II]] enemy air attack. There were also existing rail links, and a good supply of high quality water from [[Wastwater]]. Production ceased at both factories immediately following the defeat of Japan.
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{{#tag:ref|Drigg is now the site of the [[Low Level Waste Repository]] for nuclear waste. 70% of the waste received at Drigg originates from Sellafield.<ref name="auto">{{Cite journal |last=unattributed |date=25 January 1989 |title=BNF shows its rubbish dump |journal=The Journal |location=Newcastle upon Tyne, UK |publisher=Newcastle Chronicle and Journal Ltd |pages=18}}</ref>|group="nb"}} -->

===Start of nuclear activity===
[[File:HD.15.003 (11824034284).jpg|thumb|The site in 1956. In foreground Calder Hall cooling towers and two Magnox reactors. Background L to R: First Generation reprocessing plant, Windscale pile chimneys.]]
{{main|Windscale Piles}}
After the War, the Sellafield site was briefly in the ownership of [[Courtaulds]] for development as a rayon factory, but was re-acquired by the Ministry of Supply for the production of plutonium for [[nuclear weapon]]s.  Construction of the nuclear facilities commenced in September 1947 and the site was renamed Windscale Works. The building of the nuclear plant was a huge construction project, requiring a peak effort of 5,000 workers. The two air-cooled and open-circuit, [[graphite]]-moderated Windscale reactors (the "[[Windscale Piles]]") and the associated First Generation Reprocessing Plant, producing the first British weapons grade [[plutonium-239]], were central to the UK nuclear weapons programme of the 1950s.

Windscale Pile No.1 became operational in October 1950, just over three{{nbsp}}years from the start of construction, and Pile No.2 became operational in June 1951.

===Calder Hall power station===
[[File:Calder Hall, Queen opening.jpg|thumb|[[Queen Elizabeth II]] officially opening Calder Hall nuclear power station on 17 October 1956]]
With the creation of the [[United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority]] (UKAEA) in 1954, ownership of Windscale Works passed to the UKAEA. At this time the site was being expanded across the River Calder where four [[Magnox]] reactors were being built to create the world's first commercial-scale nuclear power station. This became operational in 1956 and was the world's first nuclear power station to export electricity on a commercial scale to a public grid. The whole site became known as "Windscale and Calder Works".

===British Nuclear Fuels Ltd (BNFL)===
Following the break-up of the UKAEA into a research division (UKAEA) and a newly created company for nuclear production [[British Nuclear Fuels Ltd]] (BNFL) in 1971, a major part of the site was transferred to BNFL ownership and management. In 1981 BNFL's Windscale and Calder Works was renamed Sellafield as part of a major reorganisation of the site and there was a consolidation of management under one head of the entire BNFL Sellafield site. The remainder of the site remained in the hands of the UKAEA and was still called Windscale.<ref>Cassidy, Nick, and Patrick Green. 1993. ''Sellafield: The contaminated legacy''. London: Friends of the Earth.</ref>

===Reprocessing===
Sellafield was the centre of UK nuclear reprocessing operations, which separated the [[uranium]] and [[plutonium]] from minor [[actinide]]s and [[fission product]]s present in [[spent nuclear fuel]].<ref>Openshaw, Stan, Steve Carver, and John Fernie. 1989. ''Britain's nuclear waste: Siting and safety''. London: Bellhaven Press.</ref> The uranium could be used in the manufacture of new nuclear fuel, or in applications where its density was an asset. The plutonium was originally used for weapons, and later in the manufacture of mixed oxide fuel ([[MOX fuel|MOX]]) for [[thermal reactor]]s.<ref name="gov.uk"/>

Reprocessing ceased on 17 July 2022, when the [[Magnox Reprocessing Plant]] completed its last batch of fuel after 58{{nbsp}}years of operation.<ref name="gov.uk">{{cite web |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/job-done-sellafield-plant-safely-completes-its-mission |title=Sellafield plant safely completes its mission|website=www.gov.uk |access-date=20 July 2022}}{{title missing|date=September 2022}}</ref> In January 2025, the government announced that the 140 tonnes civil plutonium stockpile produced by reprocessing, originally considered a valuable asset, would be immobilised and eventually disposed of in a [[geological disposal facility]], rather than used to produce MOX fuel which was evaluated as an uneconomic option.<ref name=wnn-20250124>{{cite news |url=https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/articles/uk-opts-for-disposal-of-plutonium-inventory |title=UK opts for disposal of plutonium inventory |website=World Nuclear News |date=24 January 2025 |access-date=5 February 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=25 June 2014 |title=delegates focus on use of plutonium |url=http://www.whitehavennews.co.uk/news/delegates-focus-on-use-of-plutonium-1.1101586 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131204031912/http://www.whitehavennews.co.uk/news/delegates-focus-on-use-of-plutonium-1.1101586 |archive-date=4 December 2013 |publisher=Whitehavennews |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

Sellafield Site has had three separate fuel reprocessing facilities:

# First Generation (Windscale): 1951–1973 – production of Plutonium for weapons. 750{{nbsp}}tonnes fuel per year
# Magnox: 1964–2022 – Magnox national reactor fleet fuel reprocessing
# [[Thermal Oxide Reprocessing Plant]] (THORP): 1994–2018 – National AGR fleet oxide fuel reprocessing

Magnox and THORP had a combined annual capacity of nearly 2,300{{nbsp}}tonnes.

Despite the end of reprocessing, Sellafield is still the central location which receives and stores used fuel from the UK's fleet of gas cooled reactor stations.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/sellafield-ltd | title=Sellafield Ltd | date=23 June 2023 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://world-nuclear.org/information-library/nuclear-fuel-cycle/fuel-recycling/processing-of-used-nuclear-fuel.aspx | title=Processing of Used Nuclear Fuel - World Nuclear Association }}</ref>
The site has also processed overseas spent fuel from several countries under contract. There had been concern that Sellafield would become a repository for unwanted international nuclear material. However, contracts agreed since 1976 with overseas customers required that all [[High Level Waste]] be returned to the country of origin. The UK retained low and intermediate level waste resulting from that reprocessing, and in substitution shipped out a radiologically equivalent amount of its own HLW. The policy was designed to be environmentally neutral by expediting, and reducing the volume, of shipments.<ref>{{cite web |title=INTERMEDIATE LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE SUBSTITUTION |url=http://www.dti.gov.uk/files/file30058.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061209060043/http://www.dti.gov.uk/files/file30058.pdf |archive-date=9 December 2006 |access-date=23 August 2006 |website=DTI |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

===Decommissioning===
Nuclear decommissioning is the process whereby a [[nuclear facility]] is dismantled to the point that it no longer requires measures for radiation protection.<ref>{{Cite journal|date=2020-09-01|title=Developing policies for the end-of-life of energy infrastructure: Coming to terms with the challenges of decommissioning|journal=Energy Policy|language=en|volume=144|pages=111677|doi=10.1016/j.enpol.2020.111677|issn=0301-4215|doi-access=free|last1=Invernizzi|first1=Diletta Colette|last2=Locatelli|first2=Giorgio|last3=Velenturf|first3=Anne|last4=Love|first4=Peter ED.|last5=Purnell|first5=Phil|last6=Brookes|first6=Naomi J.|hdl=11311/1204791|hdl-access=free}}</ref> Sellafield's highest priority [[nuclear decommissioning]] challenges are mainly the legacy of the early nuclear research and nuclear weapons programmes.<ref name="observer190409">{{Cite news |last=McKie |first=Robin |author-link=Robin McKie |date=19 April 2009 |title=Sellafield: the most hazardous place in Europe |work=[[The Observer]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2009/apr/19/sellafield-nuclear-plant-cumbria-hazards |access-date=9 June 2020 |archive-date=12 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191112155110/https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2009/apr/19/sellafield-nuclear-plant-cumbria-hazards |url-status=live }}</ref>  There is a considerable inventory of buildings which have ceased operating but are in "care and maintenance" awaiting final decommissioning.

The 2018–2021 NDA business plan for Sellafield decommissioning is focused on older legacy high hazard plants and includes the following key activities in the area of Legacy Ponds and Silos;<ref>NDA Business Plan 2018–2021, retrieved Sept 2019</ref>
* Pile Fuel Storage Pond (PFSP): Sustain sludge exports and prepare for de-watering
* Pile Fuel Cladding Silo (PFCS): Complete commissioning of Box Encapsulation Plant to receive silo contents, and begin retrievals.
* First Generation Magnox Storage Pond (FGMSP): Continue to retrieve fuel and sludge.
* Magnox Swarf Storage Silo (MSSS): Begin retrievals from the silo.
Also:
* Continue demolition of Pile No.1 chimney

Defuelling and removal of most buildings at Calder Hall is expected to take until 2032, followed by a care and maintenance phase from 2033 to 2104.  Demolition of reactor buildings and final site clearance is planned for 2105 to 2114.<ref name="ndaDecomissioning">{{cite web |date=February 2011 |title=The 2010 UK Radioactive Waste Inventory: Main Report |url=http://www.nda.gov.uk/ukinventory/documents/Reports/upload/2010-UK-Radioactive-Waste-Inventory-Main-Report.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120325081518/http://www.nda.gov.uk/ukinventory/documents/Reports/upload/2010-UK-Radioactive-Waste-Inventory-Main-Report.pdf |archive-date=25 March 2012 |access-date=22 May 2012 |publisher=Nuclear Decommissioning Agency/Department of Energy & Climate Change}}</ref>

As of March 2021, the NDA reported that they had:<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ponds and Silos at Sellafield |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/case-studies/ponds-and-silos-at-sellafield |access-date=2023-01-24 |website=GOV.UK |language=en}}</ref>
* Removed significant quantities of bulk fuel and over 300{{nbsp}}tonnes of solid intermediate level waste (ILW) from the PFSP
* Removed more than {{convert|100|m3}} of sludge from the FGMSP
* Installed the first of the 400-tonne silo emptying plants in the MSSS. The  retrievals started in June 2022;<ref name = msssstart >{{cite news  | url = https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Waste-removal-starts-at-Sellafield-facility | work = World Nuclear News | title = Waste removal starts at Sellafield facility | date = 10 June 2002 | access-date = 9 January 2023}}</ref> it is estimated this phase will continue for 20{{nbsp}}years.
* Created new access and equipment installed for waste retrieval from the PFCS

In August 2023, work started to retrieve waste from the PFCS, which had been created in the 1950s to store cladding from used Windscale Piles nuclear fuel, described as "a momentous milestone in the decommissioning story at Sellafield as the first batch of waste was successfully retrieved from the site’s oldest waste store" and "one of the most complex and difficult decommissioning challenges in the world".<ref name=nei-20230817>{{cite news |url=https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newssellafield-begins-waste-removal-from-70-year-old-silo-11081164 |title=Sellafield begins waste removal from 70-year-old silo |publisher=Nuclear Engineering International |date=17 August 2023 |access-date=24 August 2023}}</ref>

==== Management model following the Energy Act 2004====
Following ownership by [[British Nuclear Fuels Ltd|BNFL]], since 1 April 2005 the site has been owned by the [[Nuclear Decommissioning Authority]] (NDA), a non-departmental public body of the UK government created by the [[Energy Act 2004]] as part of government policy to introduce competition into the nuclear industry to better control decommissioning costs. In 2008, the NDA awarded Nuclear Management Partners (NMP) the position of Parent Body Organisation of Sellafield Ltd under their standard management model for NDA sites; this gave them complete responsibility for operating and managing the NDA-owned assets, the direct workforce and the site.  This consortium, composed of US company [[URS Corp.|URS]], British company [[AMEC]] and French company [[Areva]], was initially awarded a contract for five{{nbsp}}years, with extension options to 17{{nbsp}}years, and in November 2008, NMP took over management of the site.<ref>{{cite web |title=NMP Company Profile |url=http://www.nuclearmanagementpartners.com/about-company-profile.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100804025857/http://www.nuclearmanagementpartners.com/about-company-profile.html |archive-date=4 August 2010 |access-date=19 June 2010 |publisher=Nuclear Management Partners |df=dmy}}</ref> In October 2008, it was revealed that the British government had agreed to issue the managing body for Sellafield an unlimited indemnity against future accidents; according to ''[[The Guardian]]'', "the indemnity even covers accidents and leaks that are the consortium's fault." The indemnity had been rushed through prior to the summer parliamentary recess without notifying parliament.<ref>''[[The Guardian]]'', 27 October 2008, [https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2008/oct/27/sellafield-deal-nuclear-economy MP's anger as state bears cost of any Sellafield disaster] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170305004958/https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2008/oct/27/sellafield-deal-nuclear-economy |date=5 March 2017 }}</ref>

On 13 January 2015, the NDA announced that NMP would lose the management contract for Sellafield as the "complexity and technical uncertainties presented significantly greater challenges than other NDA sites", and the site was therefore "less well suited" to the NDA's existing standard management model.<ref>{{cite web |title=UK to change way Sellafield is managed |url=http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-UK-to-change-way-Sellafield-is-managed-13011501.html |access-date=4 July 2015 |publisher=World Nuclear News |archive-date=5 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150705144903/http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-UK-to-change-way-Sellafield-is-managed-13011501.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The new structure, which came into effect on 1 April 2016, saw Sellafield Ltd. become a subsidiary of the NDA.

====Decommissioning cost estimates====
{| class="wikitable"  style="text-align:center; margin-left:10px; float:right;"
|+ NDA increasing estimates of ''remaining'' cost of decommissioning and clean-up<ref name="nao-20150301">{{Cite report |url=http://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-committees/public-accounts/Progress-on-Sellafield-Site.pdf |title=Nuclear Decommissioning Authority – Progress on the Sellafield site: an update |date=March 2015 |publisher=National Audit Office |access-date=16 March 2015 |archive-date=2 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402121707/http://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-committees/public-accounts/Progress-on-Sellafield-Site.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=gov-20160901/>
|-
! rowspan=2 | Year of<br />estimate !! Sellafield* !! Other NDA sites !! Total
|-
! colspan=3 | (£ billions, discounted)
|-
|2006–07 || 21.9 || 11.7 || 33.6<ref name="nda_2007-08"/>
|-
|2007–08 || 24.8 || 15.9 || 40.7<ref name="nda_2007-08"/>
|-
|2009–10 || 25.2 || 19.9 || 45.1
|-
|2010–11 || 32.7 || 16.5 || 49.2
|-
|2011–12 || 37.2 || 15.6 || 52.9
|-
|2012–13 || 42.0 || 16.9 || 58.9
|-
|2013–14 || 47.9 || 17.0 || 64.9
|-
|2014–15 || 53.2 ||12.5 || 65.7<ref name="nda_strat-129_2016">[https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/512836/Nuclear_Decommissioning_Authority_Strategy_effective_from_April_2016.pdf ''Nuclear Decommissioning Authority: Strategy''], Appendix B, p.&nbsp;129. March 2016.
[https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/nuclear-decommissioning-authority-draft-strategy Via]</ref>
|-
|2015–16 || 117.4 || 43.3 || 160.7
|-
|2018–19 || 97.0 || 21.3 || 118.3<ref name="nda_cost_update-2019"/>
|-
|colspan=4 | * Sellafield includes Calder Hall and Windscale,<br />and Energy Trading
|}
[[File:Chart forecast costs clean up Sellafield vs non-Sellafield from 2005.jpg|thumb|350px|Chart of the estimated growing decommission cost for Sellafield versus other sites 2005-2120 (undiscounted), revisions until 2019]]

Sellafield accounts for most of the NDA's decommissioning budget and the increases in future cost estimates. Its share (discounted, including Calder Hall and Windscale; excluding Capenhurst) increased from 21.9&nbsp;billion (65%) in 2007<ref name="nda_2007-08">[https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/248481/0827.pdf ''Annual Report and Accounts 2007/08.''] NDA, July 2008 (2.6&nbsp;MB). See table on p.&nbsp;29.</ref> to 97.0&nbsp;billion (82%) in 2019.<ref name="nda_cost_update-2019">[https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nuclear-provision-explaining-the-cost-of-cleaning-up-britains-nuclear-legacy/nuclear-provision-explaining-the-cost-of-cleaning-up-britains-nuclear-legacy#latest-estimate ''Nuclear Provision: the cost of cleaning up Britain’s historic nuclear sites.''] NDA, Update 4 July 2019</ref>

In 2013, the UK Government [[Public Accounts Committee (United Kingdom)|Public Accounts Committee]] issued a critical report stating that NMP  had failed to reduce costs and delays. Between 2005 and 2013, the annual costs of operating Sellafield had increased from £900{{nbsp}}million to about £1.6{{nbsp}}billion. The estimated lifetime [[Annual effective discount rate|undiscounted]] cost of dealing with the Sellafield site increased to £67.5{{nbsp}}billion.<ref name="bbc-20130204">{{Cite news |date=4 February 2013 |title=Sellafield clean-up cost reaches 67.5bn, says report |publisher=BBC |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-21298117 |access-date=19 February 2013 |archive-date=8 February 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130208150902/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-21298117 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="guardian-20130204">{{Cite news |last=Terry Macalister |date=4 February 2013 |title=Sellafield management sharply criticised by Commons committee |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2013/feb/04/sellafield-management-criticised-commons-committee |access-date=19 February 2013 |archive-date=8 January 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140108145738/http://www.theguardian.com/business/2013/feb/04/sellafield-management-criticised-commons-committee |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite report |url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmpubacc/746/746.pdf |title=Nuclear Decommissioning Authority: Managing risk at Sellafield |date=23 January 2013 |publisher=House of Commons |access-date=19 February 2013 |work=Committee of Public Accounts |archive-date=4 February 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130204141443/http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmpubacc/746/746.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> NMP management was forced to apologise after projected clean-up costs passed the £70{{nbsp}}billion mark in late 2013.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Macalister |first=Terry |date=4 December 2013 |title=Sellafield bosses forced to say sorry over £70bn-plus cleanup costs |work=[[The Guardian|theguardian.com]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/dec/04/sellafield-boss-sorry-over-cleanup-costs |access-date=5 December 2013 |archive-date=5 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131205175834/http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/dec/04/sellafield-boss-sorry-over-cleanup-costs |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2014, the final undiscounted decommissioning cost projection for Sellafield was increased to £79.1{{nbsp}}billion,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gosden |first=Emily |date=23 June 2014 |title=Britain's nuclear clean-up bill soars to £110bn |work=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/10921309/Britains-nuclear-clean-up-bill-soars-to-110bn.html |access-date=13 January 2015 |archive-date=13 January 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150113120111/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/10921309/Britains-nuclear-clean-up-bill-soars-to-110bn.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and in 2015 to £117.4{{nbsp}}billion.<ref name="gov-20160901">{{cite web |date=1 September 2016 |title=Nuclear Provision: the cost of cleaning up Britain's historic nuclear sites |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nuclear-provision-explaining-the-cost-of-cleaning-up-britains-nuclear-legacy/nuclear-provision-explaining-the-cost-of-cleaning-up-britains-nuclear-legacy#latest-estimate |access-date=26 February 2017 |publisher=NDA |archive-date=26 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170226212752/https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nuclear-provision-explaining-the-cost-of-cleaning-up-britains-nuclear-legacy/nuclear-provision-explaining-the-cost-of-cleaning-up-britains-nuclear-legacy#latest-estimate |url-status=live }}</ref> The annual operating cost was projected to be £2{{nbsp}}billion in 2016.<ref name="wnn-20160106">{{Cite news |date=6 January 2016 |title=UK decommissioning agency lays out plans to 2019 |publisher=World Nuclear News |url=http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-UK-decommissioning-agency-lays-out-plans-to-2019-06011501.html |access-date=26 February 2017 |archive-date=26 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170226212856/http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-UK-decommissioning-agency-lays-out-plans-to-2019-06011501.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2018, it was revealed that the cost could be £121{{nbsp}}billion by 2120.<ref name="sellafield_indep-2018">[https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/sellafield-nuclear-power-plant-decommission-overspend-delays-budget-report-a8609671.html ''Sellafield nuclear decommissioning work ‘significantly’ delayed and nearly £1bn over budget, report reveals.''] Independent, 31 Oct 2018. [https://web.archive.org/web/20191215143808/https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/sellafield-nuclear-power-plant-decommission-overspend-delays-budget-report-a8609671.html Archived]</ref>

The cost does not include the costs for future [[geological disposal]] (GDF). These include research, design, construction, operation and closure. The undiscounted lifetime costs for a GDF were estimated £12.2&nbsp;billion in 2008. The NDA's share of this is £10.1&nbsp;billion, which results in a discounted amount of about £3.4&nbsp;billion.<ref name="nda_2007-08"/><sup>,p.&nbsp;27</sup>