Nuclear siting criteria revealed

The Government has announced how it proposes to identify suitable sites for new nuclear power stations and the criteria which will be involved - including those factors which will automatically rule out particular locations.

Consultation on this Strategic Siting Assessment (SSA) will last until November. It will lead eventually to the publication by the administration of a National Policy Statement which will include specific candidate sites which companies planning to build new nuclear plant are expected to nominate by the middle of next year.

The consultation document outlines a number of "exclusionary" and "discretionary" criteria. Exclusionary criteria relate to the fundamental suitability of a site and will be used to screen out unacceptable locations. Seismic risk, capable faulting and proximity to heavily populated areas are three examples.

Formal proposals for schemes will finally emerge early next decade, on this timetable. After projects have been determined by the yet-to-be established Infrastructure Planning Commission, construction of the first stations is anticipated to begin around 2013/14. Ministers expect the first of the new nuclear plants to be commissioned by the end of that decade.

Some of the existing nuclear sites are almost certain to emerge from the SSA process. These are currently owned by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and British Energy. The latter has the four strategic sites in southern England (Bradwell in Essex, Dungeness in Kent, Hinkley in Somerset and Sizewell in Suffolk) widely regarded as the optimum locations for new nuclear stations.

A BERR spokesman said: "Our whole approach to the potential sites for new nuclear is rooted in what is safe and secure.

"The consultation makes clear that if a site falls within an area of risk nominators must make clear how their site will be protected for the lifetime of the site, against the risks. This includes the potential effects of climate change."

Parallel to this exercise the Government has already started work on its strategic environment assessment (SEA) of the new nuclear programme.

Read the consultation document.

Roger Milne

24 July 2008