NRS

Dounreay was Britain’s 20th century centre of fast reactor research and development and is now one of Europe’s largest decommissioning and remediation projects. Approximately 180 facilities were built over 4 decades and about 50 have a legacy of radioactive materials that makes their decommissioning hazardous and challenging. They include two fast reactors cooled by liquid metal, a heavy-water materials test reactor, chemical facilities for the dissolution and reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel, and legacy waste facilities above and below ground. In addition, the marine environment around the site has a legacy of radioactive particles from historic practices.