PLANS are being put in place to import radioactive waste from decommissioned nuclear power stations to Somerset.

Hinkley A owners Magnox have indicated they are looking to apply for permission to transport a number of skips containing intermediate radioactive waste from Dungeness, Sizewell and Oldbury, through Bridgwater to their site at Hinkley Point, for processing and long-term storage.

For more than 50 years, radioactive waste has been transported along a designated route from Hinkley’s A and B station to the railway siding in Bridgwater.

Hinkley C however, by design, is required to hold all radioactive waste on site, and in planning consent conditions it was agreed no waste would be transported to or from the site once it was operational.

Magnox says this change would be a one-off to help them make use of existing storage at Hinkley A rather than building interim storage facilities at other sites.

A Magnox spokesman said: “This move will minimise impacts on safety, the environment and cost.

“Stores would not need to be built at Oldbury, Sizewell or Dungeness.

“This will result in considerably less construction and demolition work across the Magnox sites, making significant savings for the taxpayer.”

Magnox describe it as a small quantity of waste with 51 skips to be imported for Dungeness, 36 from Sizewell and 27 from Oldbury.

If approved, the transportation would likely take place between late 2019 and 2022.

Somerset County Councillor Leigh Redman said he is concerned about the precedent the move would set, if approved.

“I must object to the movement of any radioactive waste down our roads to the site, because this will be a precedent and once open there may be no stopping it,” Cllr Redman said.

“Yes, there will be statements saying this is a ‘one off’ and it will not be required again, but the precedent will be set and next time the argument will be preceded by ‘there were no problems last time, it was allowed then’.”

To view the preliminary application to Somerset County Council visit planning.somerset.gov.uk/Planning/Display/SCC/3542/2018.