Scottish Government

I am pleased to announce publication today of the Policy for higher activity radioactive waste arising in Scotland and also the Post-Adoption Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) Statement. The documents can be accessed at www.scotland.gov.uk/hawpolicy and www.scotland.gov.uk/hawpostadoption. Copies of the documents have also been placed in the Scottish Parliament's Information Centre (Bib No 52310 and Bib No 52311).

The Scottish Government position remains that it does not support deep geological disposal of radioactive waste. The Scottish Government Policy is that the long-term management of higher activity radioactive waste should be in near-surface facilities. Facilities should be located as near to the site where the waste is produced as possible. Developers will need to demonstrate how the facilities will be monitored and how waste packages, or waste, could be retrieved. All long-term waste management options will be subject to robust regulatory requirements.

The Policy is not prescriptive in its approach, recognising that it applies to Waste which may not be produced for decades and for which long-term management options may not be feasible at present or have yet to be developed.

The Scottish Government has worked closely with a wide range of stakeholders to shape the final policy. We will continue to engage with stakeholders in developing the Strategy to implement the Policy.