Ireland's radiation watchdog has appealed to the operators of the Sellafield nuclear plant in Cumbria to show how storage tanks, holding high-level radioactive waste, would be capable of withstanding a terrorist attack.
The Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland said that there was a heightened fear following the attacks on the twin towers. The Institute wants British Nuclear Fuels to be candid about the possible impact a terrorist attack on Sellafield would have, particularly if storage tanks containing liquid high-level radioactive waste were involved.
BNFL had a briefing with the Institute earlier this month but only imparted some information, citing security concerns, and then demanded that the public in Ireland not be informed about the details of this limited disclosure.
The Institute is calling on BNFL to fully inform those who want to know. The Institute said that it believed there was a heightened fear surrounding Sellafield following the 11 September attacks in New York.
However, there is clearly also work to be done in Ireland as the National Emergency Plan for Nuclear Accidents is not finalised in all aspects. In the event of a nuclear emergency, Ireland's response would be co-ordinated here at the Institute's headquarters at Clonskeagh in South Dublin.
However, the Institute itself accepts that its control room or operations room is not big enough to deal with the issue. A group of consultants are conducting a review, which is due to go to the Public Enterprise Minister, Mary O'Rourke, who will decide how to move forward.
