Radioactive waste has been produced in the UK since the 1940s. The majority of the UK’s current waste inventory has arisen as a result of using nuclear power to generate a proportion of the country’s electricity. As nuclear waste has properties that present a long-term hazard to human health and other living organisms, it requires careful and expert management. Defra has estimated that there will soon be approximately 470,000 cubic metres of waste requiring a long-term management strategy in the UK (the equivalent of filling London’s Albert Hall five times over).

The Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM) was appointed by the UK government in 2003 to make recommendations on how the UK could best manage its radioactive waste in the long-term and reported back to government in July 2006. 

The committee’s recommendation was for geological disposal as the end point for the long-term management of radioactive wastes and robust storage in the interim period, including provision of contingency against delay or failure in reaching the end point. The recommendations also focused on implementation, including the need for a staged process, flexibility in decision-making and partnership with communities willing to participate in the siting process. For further information please visit the CoRWM website.

As one of its Guiding Principles in developing its recommendations, the committee sought to consult and engage extensively with the public and stakeholders, seeing this as an integral aspect of its deliberations. CoRWM conducted four phases of Public and Stakeholder Engagement (PSE) between 2004-2006, which related to the progressive stages of their work. A series of different engagement activities were undertaken in order to explore and understand public and stakeholder views to inform each of these stages. Members of the committee attended each of these events to outline their work and rationale to participants, to respond to questions, and, most importantly, to listen and gain understanding of the views of the public and stakeholders. The Environment Council was responsible for delivering the following elements of the programme: 

National Stakeholder Forum
The National Stakeholder Forum engaged 25 key stakeholders from government, devolved assemblies, companies, regulators, workforce organisations and non-governmental organizations with an interest or responsibility relating to nuclear waste management. The Environment Council recruited stakeholders and convened, planned and facilitated each of the four National Stakeholder Forum meetings held during each of the four stages of CoRWM’s Public and Stakeholder Engagement programme. Each stage utilised the Forum to gain input from national stakeholders on CoRWM’s developing work including the review, short-listing and assessment of the management options and on the issues for implementation.

Stakeholder Round Tables
Stakeholder round tables were held at eight different locations near to nuclear sites around the UK. These involved a facilitated workshop of around 20 to 30 local stakeholders at each. These stakeholders were drawn from local government elected officers and staff, local non-governmental organisations and employees of local nuclear sites. The Environment Council convened, planned and facilitated each of the Round Table meetings held during the Public and Stakeholder Engagement programme. Each stage of the programme utilised the Round Tables to gain input from local stakeholders on the various stages of CoRWM’s work, including the review, short-listing and assessment of the management options and on the issues for implementation.

Open Meetings
The Environment Council undertook a series of open meetings at eight different locations near to nuclear sites around the UK, at which public attendance was sought. 
These meetings took place during May 2005 as part of CoRWM’s second phase of public and stakeholder engagement (PSE2). The purpose of the meetings was to explore and gain understanding participants’ views, particularly on the proposed short-list of options for managing radioactive waste and the criteria to assess them, which was the focus of the committee’s work at that point. The meetings were publicised in local newspapers and libraries and by circulation of posters to places such as supermarkets and social and recreational venues and were attended by an average number of 30 participants. 

The meetings were distinct from traditional public meetings in that they had a greater investment in design and preparation and involved the use of a facilitator to manage the discussion rather than a chair. Further, they were designed to enable the views and concerns of all attendees to be drawn out in a constructive way and to give all participants a fair opportunity to give their views, rather than the traditional experience of a public meeting during which often only the most vociferous are able to have a say. 

Citizen Panels
A series of regional Citizens Panels were also undertaken as part of the Public and Stakeholder Engagement programme. The Environment Council worked with Dr Bill Thompson (Lancaster University, Centre for the Study of Environmental Change (CSEC)) on the planning and delivery of two regional Panels for the fourth round of the programme in May 2006. Members of the public had been recruited to participate in each of the Panel sessions to give a demographic range in terms of age, gender, economic class and ethnicity. All participants were recruited on the basis that they would be willing to attend a series of meetings to cover the various stages of CoRWM’s programme. The Panels involved information giving to the participants and seeking views on the Committee’s draft option recommendations and on its draft recommendations on implementation issues through facilitated small group conversations.

If you require any further information, please contact Erica Sutton by email or telephone on 020 7632 0117.  The reports from all these meetings can be found on the CoRWM website.