COMPARISONS between Berkeley and its declining nuclear industry have been drawn with towns that have lost their mining industries.

Due to the deadline for the council to issue comments about plans to ‘import’ waste to the town, the council called an extra ordinary meeting to discuss the plans.

It was revealed that Magnox plans to transport nuclear waste from power stations in Dorset and Oxfordshire via Berkeley to a processing site in Cumbria. 

As part of a £200million savings programme, Magnox unveiled plans to limit the number of its sites it constructs waste storage facilities at.

Through this programme, waste at Oldbury power station, which includes a number of ‘packages’ from power stations in Kent and Suffolk would be stored at Berkeley’s purpose-built storage facility until a national facility is developed – saving an estimated £20million locally.

The town council asked through its comment on the application asked for 10 per cent of the local saving to mitigate the loss of the nuclear industry in the town.

Berkeley site director Mike Heaton said that as Magnox was operated under contract by the government it would not have the savings to distribute to the community.

He directed the council to Magnox’s socio-economic fund which provides grants to projects in communities where the firm operates.

Councillor Keith Palmer said that the perception for many people in Berkeley was that the town was ‘a dumping ground’.

“We’ve got waste from Sizewell, Dungeness and Oldbury coming to Berkeley,” he said. “The perception for the layman is that Berkeley is a waste dumping ground.

“I also learned recently that waste from Harwell Power Station would be coming through Berkeley because they don’t have rail heads.

A spokesman for Magnox confirmed that waste was being moved via Berkeley’s rail links on its way to Sellafield but stressed that this waste will not be going to Berkeley Power Station.

This will continue for several years until all waste has been transported to Sellafield.

Cllr Palmer added: “Berkeley is almost like a mining town. With jobs going from the power stations there’s not so much money around the town and that’s having an effect.”

After quizzing Mr Heaton and his colleague Ben Bridgewater, Cllr John Stanton proposed that the council commented on the application, neither objecting nor supporting to it.

The finalised response saying that whilst they acknowledge the economic and safety case for the storage of waste at Berkeley the ‘considerable public interest’ and ‘adverse public perception’ should be offset by the town receiving 10 per cent of the local saving has now been submitted.