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Graham to place protective layer over radioactive waste trench
Cristina Lago Deputy Editor
The NWS Low Level Waste Repository in Cumbria that Graham is working on (Image: Office for Nuclear Regulation)
The Nuclear Waste Services (NWS) has appointed Graham to place a protective layer over the legacy radioactive waste disposal trenches at its Low Level Waste Repository site in Cumbria.
The four-year contract involves working on the final ‘capping’ of legacy disposal trenches and vaults which are now full and ready for permanent closure.
Capping is an important part of the disposal lifecycle. It entails placing a new membrane, or protective layer, up to 10m thick, over the legacy disposal trenches.
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It will also include placing other construction materials to progress toward the final cap. This will provide an engineered protective cover over the waste disposed of in the trenches and vaults.
NWS has also completed the design of the final cap, the extensive enabling works and the rail transport arrangements that are necessary for procuring, importing and emplacing thousands of tonnes of materials while complying with the conditions imposed by the planning authority.
Jonathan Evans, repository site programmes director at NWS, said: “Placing the engineered cap over the legacy radioactive waste disposal facilities at the Low Level Waste Repository is a first-of-its-kind activity for the UK. The capping work is fully integrated with our ongoing disposal operations at the site.
“It is important that NWS caps the existing vaults and trenches to provide long-term protection of the environment for generations to come. This work is integral to our mission, to make the UK’s nuclear waste permanently safe, sooner.”
Graham is due to begin work in August with major works starting in February 2025.
The November/December 2025 issue of Construction Management magazine is now available to read in digital format.
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