UN tribunal denies Ireland's request to stop opening of UK nuclear processing plant

The United Nations International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea today denied a plea by Ireland for an injunction to halt the opening of a United Kingdom facility that it claimed will cause harm to the nearby marine environment.

In a ruling handed down today in Hamburg, Germany, the Tribunal said that Ireland and the United Kingdom should enter into consultations to exchange information about possible consequences for the Irish Sea that could arise from the start of operations at the Sellafield plant, which is designed to reprocess spent nuclear fuel into mixed oxide fuel (MOX).

The court also said the two countries should monitor any risks for the Irish Sea from the plant's operation and devise appropriate measures to prevent the pollution of the marine environment.

Ireland had sought to stop the United Kingdom from opening the new plant, arguing that the facility would contribute to the pollution of the Irish Sea and pointing to the potential risks involved in transporting radioactive material to and from the plant.