DOUNREAY nuclear plant was shut down yesterday after a leak of radioactive liquid during decommissioning work.

The cementation plant at the Caithness site was closed off after a batch of hazardous, dissolved spent fuel spilled on to a floor. Officials said that the incident had been contained within the cell and no one had been harmed or exposed to radioactive material.

They added, however, that the leak was a “setback” to the decommissioning of Dounreay, of which the cementation plant plays a key role. The spill comes days after the site was served with an enforcement order after it broke rules which allowed it to dispose of radio- active waste.

The liquid, which is kept in underground tanks, is pumped to the plant where it is mixed with cement then stored in 500-litre drums.

“There was no danger to any individual as the walls are about 4ft thick and work is done robotically,” a Dounreay spokesman said. He later confirmed that about 266 litres of the hazardous liquid had missed the drum and spilled on to the cell floor.

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency said: “Early indications suggest there has been no release to the environment, so I do not think it would be within our remit, but we are aware of the incident.”

Last week the agency served the site with an enforcement order after a week-long survey in June found 28 breaches of rules. This included enforcement action in connection with radioactive liquid leaking on to land around Dounreay.

The Green Party said that the incident underlined the fact there was no safe long-term disposal solution to the problem of nuclear waste.

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