The latest data on radioactive contamination along the eastern coast underline the need for a commitment by the British government to reduce and eventually eliminate discharges from the Sellafield nuclear plant, according to Greenpeace.
The environmental group has called on the Government to avail of a meeting of the OSPAR Convention on marine pollution in Dublin next January to force Britain to honour its obligations under the Sintra agreement, completed last July.
"At that meeting the UK will be expected to outline its plans to meet its OSPAR obligations. We believe the only way to do this is to stop reprocessing and to store existing waste fuel," said Mr Mike Townsley of Greenpeace International.
The results from seaweed samples taken by Greenpeace during the summer show that contamination along the Irish coast remains worryingly high, he added. The tests were completed at the University of Southampton's geosciences advisory unit.
The OSPAR deal, Mr Townsley noted, required "substantial reductions or elimination" of discharges, but recent proposals by the UK Environment Agency (EA) had called only for a reduction in Sellafield's annual discharge limit for Tc-99 from 200 terabecquerels/kg to 90 Tbq/kg, which is still nine times higher than when the OSPAR convention was signed in 1992. Tc-99, which comes from the reprocessing of magnox fuel at Sellafield, is considered by some to be harmless in small doses. However, it has a half-life of 213,000 years, and it can easily accumulate in seaweeds and shellfish. The new element on offer from the EA, he claimed, was that British Nuclear Fuels would be instructed to investigate new technology to filter Tc-99 discharges. This could cost up to £100 million, but no time limit for introducing any new technology had been set.
The Green MEP, Ms Nuala Ahern, said the Taoiseach should avail of his current good relationship with the British Prime Minister, Mr Blair, to ensure effective action to curb radioactive contamination of the Irish Sea arising from Sellafield operations.
The test samples released by Greenpeace taken from the coastline between Dundalk and Belfast underlined the need for the UK government to ensure it adhered to the "already loose conditions of the OSPAR agreement".
She noted evidence of continuing high levels of Tc-99, notably a figure of 5,980 becquerels per kg off Cooley point in Dundalk Bay, and 4,650 bq/kg found at Donaghadee, Co Down.
"These levels are extremely worrying, and show that nuclear pollution has no respect for borders," she said.
The Belfast Agreement, Ms Ahern added, could facilitate the setting-up of a cross-Border body with a view to reducing and eventually closing nuclear operations at Sellafield.
"This would protect the health of people on both sides of the Border and also in Britain. There is not much point in making grandiose promises at the Fianna Fail Ardfheis if Bertie Ahern is not prepared to put the rhetoric into action."
