Established in 1959 the LLWR is the only disposal site that is licensed by ONR in the UK. The site accepts low-level radioactive waste from all over the country and disposes of it in a way that protects people and the environment.
The waste is disposed of in engineered concrete vaults and where possible the waste is treated, containerised and grouted before placement in the vault. More than £100 million has been invested in the infrastructure of the site over the past decade to maintain the facility as an important asset for the UK.
In January 2022, as part of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s (NDA) ambition to bring together the UK’s leading nuclear waste management capabilities into a single organisation, LLWR along with Radioactive Waste Management (responsible for deep geological disposal) and the NDA group’s Integrated Waste Management Programme, came together to form Nuclear Waste Services.
The formation of Nuclear Waste Services does not change the legal status of LLWR, who remain the nuclear site licence holder for the site at Drigg in Cumbria.
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