COGEMA La Hague site

La Hague

The AREVA NC La Hague site is a nuclear fuel reprocessing plant of AREVA in La Hague on the French Cotentin Peninsula that currently has nearly half of the world's light water reactor spent nuclear fuel reprocessing capacity. It has been in operation since 1976, and has a capacity of about 1700 tonnes per year. It produces plutonium which is then recycled into MOX fuel at the Marcoule site.

It treats spent nuclear fuel from France, Japan, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands. It processed 1100 tons in 2005. The non-renewable waste is eventually sent back to the user nation, as established under international law.

History

The La Hague site was built after the Marcoule site originally for producing plutonium for military purposes. In 1969 the French military had a sufficient supply of plutonium for weapons and as such, had no use for the reprocessing center any more. After that point, the factory directed its efforts toward civil operations, and with the reduction of 350 people from the plant's workforce, its military connections ended.

This shift to civil uses was supported by Valéry Giscard d'Estaing and strengthened by the 1973 oil crisis.

Controversy surrounding radioactive releases

Greenpeace has been campaigning since 1997 for the shutdown of the site, which they claim dumps "one million litres of liquid radioactive waste per day" into the ocean; "the equivalent of 50 nuclear waste barrels", claiming the radiation affects local beaches.^[1][2][3] They have protested by creating roadblocks and chaining themselves to vehicles transporting materials to and from the site, demonstrating that they could determine which of the otherwise unmarked shipments were carrying plutonium by watching the facility for several weeks.^[4][5][6] Eric Blanc, deputy director of the processing plant, says that although the plant does intentionally release radioactive material, the annual dose in the vicinity of the plant is less than 20 microsieverts per year, which is equivalent to the dose of solar radiation received during a transatlantic flight.^[6] The AREVA NC website emphasizes that they are committed to keeping the dose below 30 microsieverts per year.^[7]

See also

• Reprocessed uranium
• Mixed oxide fuel
• Nuclear power -> Nuclear fuel cycle
  • Nuclear reprocessing -> PUREX
• Other Reprocessing Sites
  • Thorp nuclear fuel reprocessing plant
  • Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant
• West Valley Reprocessing Plant

References

1. ^ "Greenpeace installs webcam at the end of France's nuclear reprocessing discharge pipe 'to open the eyes of Governments'". Greenpeace website archive. 2000-06-26. http://archive.greenpeace.org/pressreleases/nucreprocess/2000jun26.html#one. Retrieved 2007-08-26. 
2. ^ "La Hague - France Nuclear Forces". GlobalSecurity.org. http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/france/la_hague.htm. Retrieved 2007-08-26. 
3. ^ "Areva NC discharge pipe - Collection of related press releases". Greenpeace website archive. http://archive.greenpeace.org/comms/no.nukes/reprohn.html. Retrieved 2007-08-26. 
4. ^ Naegelen, Jacky (2004-10-07). "US Bomb-Grade Plutonium Convoy to Cross France". Reuters. http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/1007-05.htm. Retrieved 2007-08-26. 
5. ^ "Greenpeace blocks top secret transport of plutonium in France, revealing global proliferation threat is not in Iraq". Greenpeace International. 2003-02-19. http://www.greenpeace.org/international/press/releases/greenpeace-blocks-top-secret-t. Retrieved 2007-08-26. 
6. ^ ^{a b} Fairley, Peter (2007-02). "IEEE Spectrum: Nuclear Wasteland". http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/print/4891. Retrieved 2007-08-26. 
7. ^ NC_en/common/gotopage&assetid=1039482706898&type=Page&callingpage=1039482706888 "Zero impact commitment". AREVA NC. http://www.AREVANClahague.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=AREVA NC_en/common/gotopage&assetid=1039482706898&type=Page&callingpage=1039482706888. Retrieved 2007-08-26. 

External links

• La Hague Plant home page
• Processing of Used Nuclear Fuel

Coordinates: 49°40′42″N 1°52′46″W / 49.67833°N 1.87944°W / 49.67833; -1.87944