Diagram of the Swedish proposed deep high level waste disposal facility

Currently, there are 470,000 cubic metres of radioctive waste with no longterm management strategy. This would be enough waste to fill London's Royal Albert Hall five times. And don't think that just because you don't live next door to Sellafield and Dounreay, that it doesn't affect you. A recent survey found that on average people in Britain live only about 26 miles away from a radioactive waste site.

In September 2001, the UK Government launched a public consultation called "Managing Radioactive Waste Safely". In response to the comments made in that consultation CoRWM was appointed in November 2003 to recommend a long-term UK strategy for managing high level, intermediate level and some low level radioactive waste.

In the first stage of CoRWM's Public and Stakeholder Engagement (PSE) programme, the Committee held plenary meetings, working groups and many consultation events the length and breadth of the UK. CoRWM sees open consultation as a necessary route to identifying the public's issues and priorities for the way in which the UK manages its nuclear waste in the long-term. 

A tunnel boring machine on the Yucca Mountain waste repository in the USA

On 4 April this year CoRWM moved forward into the second round of Public and Stakeholder Engagement (PSE 2) early in April. Having whittled down the initial list of fifteen options to four, the Committee will now consult the public with a more concise list of options. It will also ask people what are the criteria by which options should be judged. The provisional short list of options is:

• Deep disposal - waste to be disposed at between 300 metres and 2km underground where future access is not envisaged. 
• Phased deep disposal - the same as deep disposal except the waste would be retrievable.
• Shallow burial of short-lived waste - waste with a shortlife buried just below the surface. 
• Interim storage (not permanent storage) - waste would be stored temporarily above the ground or just below the surface, but it must be out of the biosphere.

In September, during PSE 2, Glasgow will host the 10th International Conference on Environmental Radiation & Radioactive Waste Management, at which CoRWM members will play a key part. This will bring CoRWM's work to a major international audience, helping us consolidate the good relationships that we have formed with regulators and with bodies like the new Nuclear Decommissioning Authority - the latter is particularly important as our recommendations will have a significant impact on their work. We also work together where possible to avoid 'consultation fatigue' for local communities.

The third stage of our consultation will run from September to December 2005, involving both specialist and citizens' panels in assessing the shortlisted waste disposal options against the publicly selected criteria - for technical, ethical and social suitability. After this, the Committee will pull together its conclusions and report back to the Government with its findings and recommendations in July 2006.

We have a key role to play in ensuring that the UK's legacy of nuclear waste can be safely handled for generations to come. If you would like to know more, or would like to be involved in our work, please visit www.corwm.org.