Guidance

Energy Security Bill factsheet: Licensing of Geological Disposal Facility beneath the seabed

Updated 1 September 2023

Why are we legislating?

A Geological Disposal Facility (GDF) is vital to the successful decommissioning of the UK’s civil nuclear legacy and our new build nuclear power programme which will support the Government’s net zero ambitions and its Energy Security Strategy.

There is interest from communities in locating a GDF off the coast deep below the seabed. The measure will clarify what we already understand to be the case in legislation and put it beyond doubt by making it expressly clear that certain nuclear sites located wholly or partly in or under the territorial sea adjacent to the UK require a licence and are regulated by the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR).  

In its 2018 policy paper, Implementing geological disposal – working with communities: An updated framework for the long-term management of higher activity radioactive waste, the UK Government reiterated its commitment to geological disposal as the best means to manage the most hazardous radioactive waste for the long term. A GDF is a highly engineered facility capable of isolating radioactive waste within multiple protective barriers, deep underground, so that no harmful quantities of radioactivity ever reach the surface.

Due to the potential level of hazard involved in its operation, it is vital that a GDF is subject to robust regulation, and therefore in the 2018 policy paper the UK Government reiterated that a GDF would be a nuclear installation under the Nuclear Installations Act 1965 (NIA 1965) and would therefore require a licence from the ONR.

The measure will provide clarity to those parties engaging or planning to engage with the process to find a suitable location for a GDF, that a GDF in their community (whether located beneath the seabed or otherwise) will be safe, secure and appropriately regulated by the ONR.

How the Bill will achieve this

The Energy Security Bill will amend the NIA 1965 and Energy Act 2013 (EA 2013) to make it expressly clear that certain nuclear sites located wholly or partly in or under the territorial sea adjacent to the UK require a licence and are regulated by the ONR.

The intention is to ensure a GDF located deep below the seabed will be licensed. Using an existing delegated power in the NIA 1965, a statutory instrument will be brought forward in due course, amending the Nuclear Installations Regulations 1971, to make a GDF (whether located beneath the seabed or otherwise) a prescribed installation that requires a licence, and as such, subject to ONR regulation.

FAQ

Will a GDF built under the seabed be safe?

GDFs are internationally recognised as the safest and most secure disposal option - based upon international research and the conclusions of the independent Committee of Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM).  

It will not be built unless the developer can demonstrate it meets the high standards of safety, security and environmental protection required by the Environment Agency and ONR. 

The same principles apply whether a GDF is built in the geological formations deep below the land surface or deep below the seabed – the waste will be isolated deep underground within multiple barriers to ensure no harmful quantities of radioactivity reach the surface environment.

Other countries, such as Sweden, are also pursuing GDFs that are partially built deep below the seabed.

What will a GDF licensing regime do?

The licensing regime will define the operating parameters of a GDF, setting the security and safety requirements and obligations on the operator.

Certain nuclear sites require a licence from the ONR in order to operate under the NIA 1965. Further secondary legislation to amend the Nuclear Installations Regulations 1971 will be brought forward in due course to make a GDF a prescribed installation that requires a licence, and as such, subject to ONR regulation.

The ONR will ensure that the developer of the GDF, Radioactive Waste Management Ltd (RWM), now part of Nuclear Waste Services, has met the requirements of its licensing process before construction commences. Once satisfied it will grant a nuclear site licence which will last the operational lifetime of the GDF.

Background

UK Government policy is to construct a GDF for the disposal of the most hazardous radioactive waste.

The provision of a disposal route for this waste will enable the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) to deliver on the decommissioning of the public-sector sites under its ownership and will support the delivery of new nuclear projects in the UK in support of the Government’s net zero ambitions and its Energy Security Strategy.

Geological disposal involves isolating radioactive waste deep underground, inside suitable geology to ensure that no harmful quantities of radioactivity ever reach the surface environment. A GDF will be highly engineered with multiple barriers at a depth of 200m – 1000m that will provide protection over hundreds of thousands of years.

Our policy for identifying a suitable location for a GDF is consent-based. It requires both a community willing to host a GDF and suitable geology. The process to find a site is underway and there is growing interest in constructing a GDF under the seabed. We want to be absolutely clear that the ONR has the power to regulate a nuclear site, including a GDF, that is constructed under the seabed, should a community decide they want to pursue that option.

Further information

The following documents are relevant to the measures and can be read at the stated locations:

• The UK Government’s policy, Implementing geological disposal – working with communities: An updated framework for the long-term management of higher activity radioactive waste (2018).