Measurement Infrastructure for Nuclear Decommissioning
The UK has an historical legacy of radioactive materials on its nuclear sites; the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority is clearing the sites, a process which will take several decades.
This NPL project continues to provide a measurement infrastructure to support the nuclear industry in its efforts to decommission nuclear sites safely.
The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority has responsibility for driving forward the decommissioning and clean-up of the UK's nuclear legacy sites. This process will take several decades and will involve the sentencing and disposal of large quantities of radioactive waste.
NPL's role is to provide the reference materials and support needed to ensure that measurements of the radioactivity content of waste materials are accurate, consistent and demonstrably independent of the nuclear industry.
The metrological infrastructure has three components:
- Contributing to the development of relevant Measurement Good Practice Guides and the 'Nuclear Industry Codes of Practice'.
- Running Proficiency Test Exercises for waste measurement laboratories.
- Developing reference materials.
NPL is organising a national 'metrology for decommissioning' workshop (to be held in January 2012) which will involve the various stakeholders in the nuclear industry and which will update the priorities of the infrastructure.
