Dounreay Atomic Energy Plant Thurso Caithness Northern Scottish Highlands UK
Dounreay (Ordnance Survey grid reference NC982669) is the name of a now ruinous castle on the north coast of Caithness, in the Highland area of Scotland. The castle is within grounds used by the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (Dounreay Nuclear Power Development Establishment) and the Ministry of Defence (Vulcan Naval Reactor Test Establishment), and the site is best known for its five nuclear reactors, three owned and operated by the UKAEA[1] and two by the Ministry of Defence. The nuclear power establishment was built on the site of a World War II airfield, called HMS Tern (II). The airfield was transferred to the Admiralty by RAF Coastal Command in 1944, as a satellite of HMS Tern at Twatt in Orkney. It never saw any action during the war and was placed into care and maintenance in 1949. Dounreay is near the A836 road, about 9 miles (14 km) west of the town of Thurso, which grew rapidly when the research establishment was developed during the mid 20th century. The establishment remained a major element in the economy of Thurso and Caithness until 1994 when the government ordered the reactors closed for good; a large population employed in the clean-up of the site (which is scheduled to continue until at least 2025) remains On 1 April 2005 the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) became the owner of the site, with the UKAEA remaining as operator. Decommissioning of Dounreay is planned to bring the site to an interim care and surveillance state by 2036, and as a brownfield site by 2336, at a total cost of £ billion. Apart from decommissioning the reactors, reprocessing plant, and associated facilities, there are five main environmental issues to be dealt with: A 65-metre deep shaft used for intermediate level nuclear waste disposal is contaminating some groundwater, and is threatened by coastal erosion in about 300 years time.
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Location: Dounreay Thurso Caithness Northern Scottish Highlands UK
Photo credit: © David Gowans / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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