Environment

There are major chemical and radiological hazards at Dounreay which, if not properly contained, could cause serious harm to people and the environment.

Reducing or eliminating these hazards in a way that protects people and the environment - both today and in the future - is the task of Dounreay Site Restoration Ltd as the main site contractor to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.

It's important, too, that we seek to minimise the impact of our day-to-day business on the environment in aspects such as carbon emissions.

THE ENVIRONMENT OF DOUNREAY

Dounreay sits upon gently undulating farmland on the underlying Old Red Sandstones, a series of finely bedded strata with a pronounced northward dip.

There is evidence of human activity in the environment of the site dating as far back as 4000BC.

Industrial activity really only took over from agricultural in 1941 when the military built and briefly operated a wartime airfield.

The greatest impact by humans on the environment came in 1955 with the development of an atomic energy research establishment.

This was a major industrial operation. It displaced some of the natural environment and left scars in the form of pollution that is still detectable today.

SITE CLOSURE

Today, our task is to shut down that operation and clean up those experiements, to heal the scars they left and restore the site to a condition that will be safe for future generations.

The work to clean out and dismantle the experiments itself has the potential to cause significant harm. So it is essential we have sufficient controls in place around this work and standards that meet those demanded today by society for environmental protecition.

It's important, too, that we continue to monitor the environment in and around the site so we can measure the impact of the clean-up on the environment.

This section of the website contains more information about the natural environment of the area, the people responsible for its protection, the controls in place and the steps we're taking to encourage nature to reclaim it.

Nuclear Energy in the Environment - a leaflet produced by the Nuclear Industry Association

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Image: Otters spotted on the forehore in 2006

Otters spotted on the forehore in 2006

Image: A plover nest in an area of disturbed ground on the site

A plover nest in an area of disturbed ground on the site

Image: Thistles growing in open ground on the licensed site

Thistles growing in open ground on the licensed site

Image: Rock and rubble from site restoration work is being recycled to create aggregate for other decommissioning projects, such as hardcore for laydown areas and capping for restored areas

Rock and rubble from site restoration work is being recycled to create aggregate for other decommissioning projects, such as hardcore for laydown areas and capping for restored areas

Image: TV naturalist and present Mike Dilger in a wild flower meadow developed on vacant ground at the site as a habitat for wildlife

TV naturalist and present Mike Dilger in a wild flower meadow developed on vacant ground at the site as a habitat for wildlife

Image: Scottish Cabinet Secretary for the Environment and Rural Affairs Richard Lochhead, centre, on a visit to Dounreay in 2008

Scottish Cabinet Secretary for the Environment and Rural Affairs Richard Lochhead, centre, on a visit to Dounreay in 2008
 

Image: Parts of the ground at Dounreay were contaminated by practices during the operation of the site

Parts of the ground at Dounreay were contaminated by practices during the operation of the site