Phase 2 of the Sellafield Contaminated Land Management Programme

The second phase of the Sellafield Contaminated Land Study (SCLS) has been renamed and expanded into the Sellafield Contaminated Land and Groundwater Management Project (SCL&GMP). The main two year SCL&GMP programme commenced in April 2007 and will include a detailed characterisation of the Separation Area and subsequent assessment and updating of the conceptual model for contaminated ground on the site. Site works are now complete with a cumulative drilling depth of over 3000m achieved.

The potential for radioactive contamination of land and groundwater in this area is currently a major item of uncertainty in liability cost estimates for the Sellafield site and this work will enable future estimates to be made with greater confidence. It will also support ongoing safety and environmental management and aid the development of strategy and planning for the future.

The programme has entailed the drilling of 145 boreholes, some down to 60m below ground level, the installation of over 120 new groundwater monitoring wells and the undertaking of a major amount of field and laboratory testing.

The characterisation work is designed to better understand:

  • The current and future risk to the workforce.
  • The current and future risk to the public / environment.
  • The current extent of the contaminated land inventory and the amount of possible spread and future inventory.

The main output from the characterisation work will be:

  • An updated conceptual model for the Site as well as individual conceptual models for the different source terms.
  • A robust, fully auditable database containing land and groundwater data.
  • A Geographical Information System (GIS) which uses the above database as well as other relevant site databases to visualise the contaminated land and groundwater data.
  • Developed codes and computer models to predict the Risks associated with the subsurface contamination now and in the future.