- Site: Olbury, Berkeley
- IR number: 20-103
- Date: March 2021
- LC numbers: 18
Executive summary
Purpose of Intervention
ONR undertook this inspection to examine Magnox Limited’s arrangements for controlling exposure to ionising radiations, Licence Condition 18 and Covid arrangements. This was one of a series of planned inspections for 2020/21 in support of ONR’s Decommissioning Fuel and Waste sub-division strategy.
Interventions Carried Out by ONR
I inspected the Berkeley and Oldbury sites’ to review their onsite Covid secure measures and compliance with the following:
- Licence Condition (LC) 18 – Radiological Protection
- Ionising Radiations Regulations 2017 (IRR17)
Explanation of Judgement if Safety System Not Judged to be Adequate
Not Applicable.
Key Findings, Inspector's Opinions and Reasons for Judgements Made
The key findings were as follows:
- Both sites have implemented comprehensive Covid secure measures and I observed good compliance on both sites during the visits.
- The licensee’s arrangements for radiological protection (LC18) enabled them to meet the requirements to report average and maximum effective doses and these arrangements had been implemented for both sites through the approved dosimetry service;
- The licensee has carried out adequate investigations into radiological related incidents. These established the circumstances surrounding the events and enabled the identification of appropriate actions to reduce the probability of a recurrence;
- Accredited Health Physics support at Berkeley is currently at a historical low level and at the minimum level to demonstrate adequacy. An active recruitment campaign is underway for at least two permanent posts to improve resilience in this area. Overall I judged both sites to have adequate access to radiation protection specialist resource in the form of Accredited Health Physicists, Radiation Protection Advisers, and Radiation Protection Supervisors.
- A query regarding a scaffolding platform on a C3 enclosure raised during the visit to Oldbury was resolved quickly and confirmed to be within the licensee’s arrangements.
Conclusion of Intervention
It is my judgement that the licensees are complying with the requirements of Licence Condition 18 and those elements of IRR17 which were inspected, at both Berkeley and Oldbury sites. Covid secure measures were in place at both sites and I observed good compliance being demonstrated by staff and contractors during the visits. My query regarding a scaffolding platform was satisfactorily dealt with during the inspection.