Nuclear Power’s Second Act

As momentum builds behind a new wave of nuclear investment, there is a parallel and pressing challenge: dealing with the legacy of the previous wave. While nuclear power delivers reliable, carbon-free electricity around the clock, it comes with a very long tail: nuclear waste.

The clean-up of 17 of the UK’s earliest nuclear sites illustrates the scale of the challenge. Some date back to the postwar nuclear industry of the 1940s, and their decommissioning is expected to last around 120 years. Dismantling, waste management, disposal and land remediation are likely to continue well into the 22nd century.

The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) owns these 17 historic sites on behalf of the UK government and determines how they should be decommissioned. The work itself is carried out by site license companies (SLCs), with annual costs currently running at around £3 billion.