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Controversy as British agency gets Sellafield study contract
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BRITISH Government agency has been awarded the contract to carry out a
study of public exposure in Ireland to radioactivity from Sellafield.
The Irish nuclear watchdog this week defended the decision as it confirmed
the Centre for Environmental, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS)
an agency of Britain’s Department of the Environment (DEFRA)
was the only group to bid for the ?60,000 contract.
This is despite the long-running dispute between the Irish and British
governments over the continued operation of the Sellafield nuclear reprocessing
plant and its radioactive emissions into the Irish Sea.
Dr Tony Colgan of the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland (RPII)
said CEFAS was the sole bidder for the project.
He said: “Obviously we would have liked to have applications from
more than one group. I can understand that some people might think that
maybe CEFAS would like a certain outcome to the survey because of their
relationship with the British Government but that is not the case.
“They are a highly-reputable lab with a huge amount of experience.
I think even if there had been a number of tenders submitted CEFAS would
have been at least shortlisted.”
But Fine Gael environment spokesman Fergus O’Dowd whose Louth constituency
will be at the focus of the study said the CEFAS bid should not have been
considered.
He said: “It’s something that must be totally independent
of the British Government because clearly any radioactivity that is there
is due to Sellafield. No matter how professional this group is there are
issues of public confidence that must be paramount.” |
