The British government has published plans that could see it build a next-generation nuclear power plant adjacent to the controversial Sellafield site in Cumbria by 2025.
In the first major announcement on the future of nuclear power in the United Kingdom since the Fukushima disaster in Japan, the plan outlines eight locations the British government deems suitable for new power stations by 2025, all of which are adjacent to existing nuclear sites.
The Irish Government raised concerns over the existing plant in Sellafield as recently as March.
In addition to Sellafield, the sites are: Bradwell, Essex; Hartlepool; Heysham, Lancashire; Hinkley Point, Somerset; Oldbury, South Gloucestershire; Sizewell, Suffolk; and Wylfa, Anglesey.
Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan met with British energy secretary Chris Huhne in March to discuss nuclear safety issues, and expressed Ireland's continued concern regarding the Sellafield plant, a department spokesman said today.
"We have also engaged with the UK on a bilateral basis in relation to its new-build policy. We highlighted our concerns in respect of the cumulative affects of so many old facilities at the site in Cumbria, and our concern about radioactive discharge and emergency planning," he added.
Regarding today’s announcement by the UK authorities, the spokesman said "it is noteworthy that the final published plans envisage a new plant at only one site in Cumbria (Sellafield), and not the three originally suggested".
The Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland has been asked by the department to conduct a potential impact for Ireland in respect to the facility.
The British government's plans are subject to approval by parliament.
Additional reporting: PA