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Liquid Discharges from Nuclear Installations in 2024

Executive Summary

This report presents the 2024 data for liquid radioactive discharges from nuclear installations along with temporal trends for the period 1989 - 2024. On this basis, an assessment has been made for the discharges from the nuclear sector which comprises the following sub-sectors;

  • nuclear power stations;
  • nuclear fuel reprocessing plants;
  • nuclear fuel fabrication and enrichment plants;
  • research and development facilities;
  • decommissioning facilities and management of legacy radioactive wastes activities. 

Discharges are reported as total alpha, tritium and total beta (excluding tritium) in terabecquerels per year (TBq/y).

The overall trend in 2024 is a steady continuing reduction in the majority of reported discharges which reflects the longer-term trend.

The total discharges of alpha activity from all nuclear installations in 2024 were around 0.1 TBq which is a small decrease of 0.02 TBq over the previous year. Discharges of total alpha in 2024 are only about 3.2% of the 1989 peak and the lowest year on record.

Discharges from the fuel reprocessing sub-sector contributed 42% and the decommissioning sub-sector contributed over fifty percent for the second consecutive year with 53% of the overall total alpha discharge in 2024. The single largest contributor of alpha discharges in 2024 was decommissioning related discharges from Sellafield at 51% of the total.

The total discharge of tritium from all nuclear facilities in 2024 was similar to 2023 at 11,900 TBq, a decrease of approximately 8% on the 2021 & 2022 results. Discharges of tritium are still being dominated by those from the reprocessing sector with 82% of the total from all installations coming from La Hague.

Discharges of total beta activity (excluding tritium) from all nuclear installations have decreased markedly since 1989 (930 TBq) to 2024 (9.2 TBq). In 2024 total beta discharges decreased by around 4% from the previous year to about 9.6 TBq and represents the lowest recorded levels since 1989.  Historically, total beta discharges have been dominated by discharges from the reprocessing plants and the nuclear fuel fabrication plant at Springfields to a lesser extent. In 2024, the contribution of the reprocessing sub-sector increased slightly from 36% in 2023 to 44% of the total but this is still much lower than the peak contribution of this sub-sector (81% in 2007).

The contribution of decommissioning discharges in 2024 was lower than 2023 which means this is the second highest contributing sub-sector in 2024 (40% of all installations). Discharges from decommissioning, and the management of historical or legacy waste, in 2024 was 3.8 TBq.

Introduction

Work to prevent and reduce pollution from ionising radiation in the North-East Atlantic was first undertaken within the framework of the former 1974 Convention for the Prevention of Marine Pollution from Land-based Sources (the “Paris Convention”) and then under the 1992 Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic (the “OSPAR Convention”), which replaces the Paris Convention and establishes the OSPAR Commission.   

At the first Ministerial Meeting of the OSPAR Commission (20-24 July 1998, Sintra, Portugal), an OSPAR Strategy for Radioactive Substances was adopted to guide the future work of the OSPAR Commission on protecting the marine environment of the North-East Atlantic against radioactive substances arising from human activities. This strategy was revised at the third Ministerial Meeting of the OSPAR Commission (23-24 September 2010, Bergen, Norway), where the Strategy of the OSPAR Commission for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic 2010-2020 (the “North-East Strategy”) was adopted. In 2021, the North-East Atlantic Environment Strategy (NEAES) 2030 was agreed in Cascais, Portugal to cover the period 2020 - 2030.

The NEAES sets out OSPAR’s vision, objectives, strategic directions, and action for the period up to 2030. In Part I, the new Strategy sets out its 12 strategic objectives. Strategic Objective 3 commits OSPAR Contracting Parties to Prevent pollution by radioactive substances in order to safeguard human health and to protect the marine environment with the ultimate aim of achieving and maintaining concentrations in the marine environment at near background values for naturally occurring radioactive substances and close to zero for human made radioactive substances.

Strategic objective 3 is supported by 4 operational objectives setting targets and further details of how Strategic Ojective 3 will be achieved. These are:

  • S3.O1: On an ongoing basis OSPAR will further prevent, progressively reduce or, where that is not practicable, minimise discharges of radioactive substances through the application of Best Available Techniques (BAT), taking into account technical feasibility, radiological impact and legitimate uses of the sea.
  • S3.O2: By 2025 OSPAR will identify and consider any obstacles in achieving further reductions in environmental concentrations of radioactive substances in the marine environment and examine possible solutions where appropriate.
  • S3.O3: By 2025 OSPAR will identify the different types of loss of radioactive substances that may contribute to pollution of the marine environment. By 2027 OSPAR will determine if any additional measures are required to prevent such pollution, to the extent that such pollution is not already the subject of effective measures agreed by other international organisations or prescribed by other international conventions.
  • S3.O4: By 2028 OSPAR will, following the outcome of the Quality Status report 2024, address, where appropriate, any uncertainties by reviewing and updating methodologies to better determine the possible impact of releases, emissions and losses of radioactive substances on marine ecosystems.

The NEAES 2030 provides a means for achieving a clean, healthy and biologically supportive North-East Atlantic Ocean, which is productive, used sustainably and resilient to climate change and ocean acidification. The OSPAR Commission will continue to monitor and assess the status of the OSPAR maritime area ensuring that data collection and assessment programmes are kept under continuous review. The effective use and management of data and information is required to support the production of robust assessments.

To this end, the Radioactive Substances Committee (RSC) continues the annual collection of data on discharges of radionuclides from the nuclear sector. Regular reporting is required in order to review progress towards the radioactive strategic and operational objectives of the NEAES 2030. 

Programmes and Measures

Since the mid 1980s, liquid discharges of radioactive substances from nuclear installations have been addressed first under the former Paris Convention and then under the OSPAR Convention. The following relevant measures are applicable under the OSPAR Convention:

The OSPAR Fifth Periodic Evaluation of the Progress in Implementing the OSPAR Radioactive Substances Strategy, published in 2022 (OSPAR publication 2016/687), has also informed this report.  

 

1 The implementation of this Recommendation requires an assessment to be carried out as to whether BAT is being applied in nuclear installations. Contracting Parties submit national reports that also contain discharge data on a regular basis thereby using the Guidelines for the submission of information about, and the assessment of, the application of BAT in nuclear facilities (reference number: 2004-03).

2 Assessments of the effect and relative contributions of remobilised historical discharges and current discharges of radioactive substances, including wastes, on the marine environment have been published in the Quality Status Report 2000 published by the OSPAR Commission in 2000 (ISBN 0 946956 52 9) and in the MARINA II Report published by the European Commission (EC, 2003).

 

Annual Reporting

In 1985, Contracting Parties to the former Paris Convention initiated reporting on liquid discharges from nuclear installations. These data have subsequently been submitted annually by Contracting Parties, collated by the Secretariat and, following examination by the Expert Assessment Panel (EAP) of the OSPAR Radioactive Substances Committee, published by the OSPAR Commission in the form of annual reports. At first annual reports were published as part of the OSPAR Commission's general Annual Report, and from 1991 onwards they are published in the form of Annual OSPAR Reports on Liquid Discharges from Nuclear Installations in the OSPAR maritime area. From 1998 onwards, the annual reports also contain an assessment of liquid discharges which include a description of the trends from 1989 until the date of the latest report. Over time, reporting requirements and formats for data collection as regards nuclear installations have been regularly reviewed and updated in the light of experience and ongoing work under the OSPAR Commission. With a view to harmonising the way in which data and information are being established and reported, the OSPAR Commission adopted in 1996 a set of reporting formats for the annual Collection of Data on Liquid Discharges from Nuclear Installations, which were updated in 2010 to include a guide to generate “total-α” and “total β” discharge data. There was a further update of the set of reporting formats in 2013 (OSPAR Agreement: 2013-10) which were revised in 2021.

RSC decided at its annual meeting in 2006, that for data from 2005 onwards, discharges arising from decommissioning and the recovery and conditioning of legacy wastes should be reported separately from operational nuclear discharges. The discharges from such activities were reported as “Exceptional Discharges” and appear in this report in a separate table.

Parameters Monitored and Reported

Tables 1-8 of this report contain data on total-α (Table 1), tritium (Table 2), total-β (Table 3), and individual radionuclides (Tables 4-8). Figures 1-3 of this report show trends in discharges of total-α activity, tritium and total-β activity respectively.

Total-α and total-β values are useful as they will encompass the contribution to the overall activity from a wide range of radionuclides which, individually, would be difficult to measure or could be below detection limits. However, total-α and total-β values provide limited information about the potential harm and, as such, information should be based on the characteristics of individual radionuclides. Tritium is reported separately.

There is currently little consistency in the approach adopted by Contracting Parties in the assessment of total-α and total-β quantities. Consequently, for the purposes of this report total-α quantities include measurements that are strictly gross-α. The calculation of total-β varies between Contracting Parties. For example, in some cases it is the sum of individual radionuclide measurements and in other cases gross-β measurements are used.

Total-α represents the measured radioactivity of α-particle emitting radionuclides. These particles are emitted as a result of the decay of certain radionuclides, the so-called α emitters. Typically, the total liquid discharges of α-emitters from all nuclear sites represent mainly Pu 239, Pu-240 and Am-241 and, to a lesser extent, Th-230, Pu 238 and some other nuclides. Total-β represents the sum of the measured radioactivity of β-particle emitting radionuclides. These particles are emitted as a result of the decay of certain radionuclides, the so-called β-emitters. On average, the total liquid discharges of β-emitters from all nuclear sites represent mainly Ru-106, Sr-90, Pu-241, Cs-137, Tc-99 and, to a lesser extent, a range of other radionuclides. Total-β in this report excludes tritium, which is reported separately.

Tritium (H-3) is an isotope of hydrogen that emits low-energy radiation in the form of β-particles. Tritium is discharged from most nuclear power plants, reprocessing plants and some research and development facilities.

Location of Nuclear Facilities in OSPAR countries discharging directly or indirectly to the OSPAR maritime area in 2024. Available via https://odims.ospar.org/en/submissions/ospar_discharges_nuclear_2024_07/

Nuclear Installation Types
BelgiumDenmarkFranceGermanyNorwayPortugalSpainSwedenSwitzerlandThe NetherlandsUnited KingdomGrand Total
Decommissioning and Management of Legacy Radioactive Wastes1113111330
Nuclear Fuel Fabrication and Enrichment Plants11125
Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing Plants/Decommissioning and Management of Legacy Radioactive Wastes112
Nuclear Power Stations21462141838
Nuclear Power Stations/Decommissioning and Management of Legacy Radioactive Wastes11
Research and Development Facilities114211212
Grand Total3118242141642488

Assessment of the liquid radioactive discharges from nuclear installations in 2024

Introduction

Table 1, Table 2 and Table 3 summarise liquid radioactive discharges from nuclear installations for the period 1989 – 2024 (i.e., 36 years of discharge data); data are taken from the OSPAR Annual Reports on Liquid Discharges from Nuclear Installations (discharge data have been rounded to two significant figures in this assessment report. Data from 1995 have been submitted to Contracting Parties for verification and correction). These annual reports have been required from the Contracting Parties after the signature of the OSPAR Convention in 1992 in order to quantify the "land-based sources" of radioactive substances which may reach the OSPAR maritime area and to identify their trends. Reported discharges include data on operational discharges from nuclear power stations, nuclear fuel reprocessing plants, nuclear fuel fabrication and enrichment plants, and research and development facilities. Since 2005, discharges associated with the recovery of historical or legacy waste and decommissioning are reported separately for some sites. These have previously been known as ‘exceptional’ discharges. In 2014 the Contracting Parties agreed to apply the definitions for ‘operational’ and ‘exceptional’ discharges adopted at RSC 2013 and these definitions were included in the guidance to the revised reporting formats for discharges made since 2013. During OSPAR 2024 it was agreed that the term ‘exceptional’ discharges would be dropped and would now just be known as ‘decommissioning’ discharges. Such differentiation is becoming particularly important where the magnitude of discharges associated with the recovery of historical and legacy wastes and decommissioning is clearly evident. In recent years, the contribution of decommissioning discharges has increased to become one of the main contributors of discharges from nuclear installations.

Table 1 gives discharges of total alpha activity; Table 2 gives tritium discharges and Table 3 gives discharges of total beta activity (excluding tritium) in terabecquerels per year (TBq/y) for each sub-sector. The tables also give the percentage contributions from each sub-sector. Figure 1, Figure 2 and Figure 3 show the trends in annual discharges of total alpha, tritium and total beta (excluding tritium) for the period 1989 to 2024. Figure 1, Figure 2 and Figure 3 therefore shows the achievements of the OSPAR Convention since it has been signed in 1992.

Figure 4, Figure 5 and Figure 6 gives the same discharges data but for the period 1995 to 2024 only. Figure 4, Figure 5 and Figure 6 therefore shows the achievements of the OSPAR Strategy adopted in 1998.

Trends in total alpha discharges

Table 1 and Figure 1 show the total alpha activity discharged from 1989 to 2024. The total discharges of alpha activity from all nuclear installations in 2024 were around 0.1 TBq which is a small decrease of 0.02 TBq over the previous year. Discharges of total alpha in 2024 are only about 3.2% of the 1989 peak and the lowest year on record.

Discharges from the fuel reprocessing sub-sector contributed 42% and the decommissioning sub-sector contributed over fifty percent for the second consecutive year with 53% of the overall total alpha discharge in 2024.

The single largest contributor of alpha discharges in 2024 was decommissioning related discharges from Sellafield at 51% of the total. Correspondingly, operational alpha discharges from Sellafield reduced from 25% of the total in 2022 to 4% of the total in 2024, indicating an increasing focus to decommissioning at the Sellafield site. Operational alpha discharges from La Hague were 38% of the total in 2024.

Discharges from decommissioning activities is again, for the fourth year the largest contributor to total alpha discharges from nuclear installations. The longer term trend for decommissioning discharges is a steady increase as the number of facilities in decommissioning has grown, followed by a corresponding reduction in the number of operational facilities in other sub-sectors.

Discharges of alpha emitters from the fuel fabrication and enrichment sub-sector have seen a steady decrease from 0.0106 TBq in 2020 to 0.005 TBq in 2024, a 47% reduction over 4 years. Most of the discharges of total alpha from this sub-sector are from the Springfields fuel fabrication plant in the UK.

Discharges of alpha activity from nuclear power plants and research and development facilities in 2024 were a very small fraction of the total discharge (approx. 0.1 0/0).

Alpha discharges measured from the nuclear power sub-sector in 2024 were at the lowest recorded since 1989 with only 0.00002 TBq discharged.

NF = All Nuclear Facilities
RP = Reprocessing Plants
NPP = Nuclear Power Plants
NFFEP = Nuclear Fuel Fabrication and Enrichment Plants
RDF = Research and Development Facilities
Decom = Decommissioning
% = % of all installations

Table 1: Total alpha discharges 1989-2024 (TBq)
YearAllRP%NPP%NFFEP%RDF%Decom%
19893.10E+002.70E+0086.00--4.10E-0113.003.00E-020.96
19902.40E+002.20E+0091.00--2.10E-019.002.00E-020.82
19912.40E+002.30E+0093.00--1.50E-016.003.00E-021.23
19921.80E+001.70E+0093.00--1.00E-015.003.00E-021.63
19932.90E+002.70E+0094.00--8.00E-023.001.00E-013.47
19941.40E+001.10E+0081.00--1.60E-0112.001.00E-017.35
19956.95E-014.70E-0167.651.07E-030.151.29E-0118.579.47E-0213.62
19965.33E-013.16E-0159.311.29E-030.241.25E-0123.419.08E-0217.04
19973.79E-012.28E-0160.024.14E-040.111.24E-0132.602.76E-027.27
19984.35E-012.21E-0150.815.28E-040.121.99E-0145.821.41E-023.25
19994.18E-011.73E-0141.243.01E-040.072.42E-0157.943.11E-030.74
20003.35E-011.56E-0146.506.55E-040.201.77E-0152.712.00E-030.60
20014.13E-012.47E-0159.802.85E-040.071.64E-0139.681.84E-030.45
20026.15E-013.89E-0163.233.32E-040.052.23E-0136.312.53E-030.41
20036.17E-014.30E-0169.641.11E-030.181.82E-0129.464.45E-030.72
20044.87E-013.08E-0163.383.76E-040.081.77E-0136.301.18E-030.24
20055.22E-012.70E-0151.671.35E-040.032.51E-0148.051.42E-040.031.17E-030.23
20063.11E-012.30E-0173.917.67E-050.028.03E-0225.811.28E-040.046.63E-040.21
20071.69E-011.42E-0184.025.49E-050.032.62E-0215.521.35E-040.085.88E-040.35
20081.73E-011.47E-0184.891.33E-040.082.22E-0212.799.15E-050.053.81E-032.20
20091.91E-011.70E-0189.076.68E-050.031.71E-028.976.41E-050.033.61E-031.89
20101.85E-011.60E-0186.154.59E-050.022.10E-0211.356.50E-050.044.51E-032.43
20111.68E-011.43E-0184.904.84E-050.032.20E-0213.097.99E-050.053.25E-031.93
20121.88E-011.62E-0186.075.37E-050.032.37E-0212.639.27E-050.052.30E-031.22
20131.98E-011.48E-0174.644.22E-050.021.60E-028.105.86E-050.033.41E-0217.21
20142.11E-011.81E-0185.613.90E-050.021.44E-026.837.56E-050.041.58E-027.50
20152.33E-011.91E-0182.174.16E-050.022.29E-029.851.38E-040.061.84E-027.91
20162.92E-012.47E-0184.523.40E-050.011.50E-025.151.16E-040.043.00E-0210.28
20172.22E-011.32E-0159.373.11E-050.011.81E-028.198.37E-050.047.18E-0232.39
20181.87E-019.52E-0250.873.31E-050.027.83E-034.191.14E-040.068.40E-0244.87
20191.90E-011.10E-0157.632.51E-050.019.84E-035.181.29E-040.076.84E-0236.03
20201.51E-017.31E-0248.412.60E-050.021.06E-027.021.82E-040.126.63E-0243.91
20211.60E-017.52E-0246.972.84E-050.028.71E-035.448.82E-050.067.61E-0247.53
20221.13E-015.19E-0245.895.37E-050.056.15E-035.447.41E-050.075.49E-0248.55
20231.23E-014.91E-0239.982.19E-050.025.96E-034.858.37E-050.076.76E-0255.08
20241.02E-014.28E-0241.962.13E-050.025.03E-034.931.56E-040.155.40E-0252.94

 

Hover mouse cursor over the figure to see values. Click legend elements to include/exclude from figure.

Trends in tritium discharges

Table 2 and Figure 2 show the discharges of tritium, a weak beta emitter with a low radiological impact. The total discharge of tritium from all nuclear facilities in 2024 was similar to 2023 at 11,900 TBq, a decrease of approximately 8% on the 2021 & 2022 results.

Discharges of tritium are still being dominated by those from the reprocessing sector with 82% of the total from all installations coming from La Hague), generally levels of tritium have fluctuated in accordance with spent fuel reprocessing rates and in 2024 tritium discharges were broadly similar to those in 2022 and 2023 from this sub-sector.

During 2024 the discharge of tritium by nuclear power stations contributed about 18% of the total tritium discharges from the nuclear sector.  UK’s reactors (mainly Advanced Gas-cooled Reactors) contributed about 52% (1140 TBq) of the total tritium discharged from power stations. The Pressurised Water Reactors in France contributed about 37% (793 TBq) of the total from power stations in 2024.

Tritium discharges arising from decommissioning facilities have been recorded separately since 2006 and continue to be a relatively small and variable contribution depending upon decommissioning projects and campaigns. Discharges in 2024 were 9.7 TBq, which are the second lowest since 2012. This is around 0.08 % of the total across all sub-sectors.

Discharges from other sub-sectors were very small.

NF = All Nuclear Facilities
RP = Reprocessing Plants
NPP = Nuclear Power Plants
NFFEP = Nuclear Fuel Fabrication and Enrichment Plants
RDF = Research and Development Facilities
Decom = Decommissioning
% = % of all installations

Table 2: Tritium discharges 1989-2024 (TBq)
NFRP%NPP%NFFEP%RDF%Decom%
19898.00E+035.80E+037.20E+012.20E+032.70E+01--6.10E+017.60E-01
19907.20E+035.00E+036.90E+012.20E+033.00E+01--1.00E+021.40E+00
19918.80E+036.50E+037.40E+012.30E+032.60E+01--3.20E+013.70E-01
19927.70E+035.00E+036.50E+012.70E+033.50E+01--2.40E+013.10E-01
19931.10E+047.50E+036.80E+013.40E+033.10E+01--8.80E+018.10E-01
19941.30E+049.80E+037.60E+013.00E+032.40E+01--1.20E+029.10E-01
19951.51E+041.23E+048.17E+012.74E+031.82E+010.00E+000.00E+002.62E+011.74E-01
19961.68E+041.35E+048.02E+013.31E+031.96E+010.00E+000.00E+001.77E+011.05E-01
19971.81E+041.45E+048.03E+013.53E+031.96E+010.00E+000.00E+001.75E+019.70E-02
19981.62E+041.28E+047.91E+013.37E+032.08E+010.00E+000.00E+001.46E+019.02E-02
19991.89E+041.54E+048.18E+013.39E+031.80E+010.00E+000.00E+004.97E+012.63E-01
20001.61E+041.28E+047.93E+013.32E+032.06E+010.00E+000.00E+001.07E+016.63E-02
20011.60E+041.22E+047.62E+013.81E+032.38E+010.00E+000.00E+008.29E+005.17E-02
20021.89E+041.52E+048.04E+013.69E+031.95E+010.00E+000.00E+001.41E+017.45E-02
20031.97E+041.58E+048.02E+013.89E+031.97E+010.00E+000.00E+002.00E+011.02E-01
20042.07E+041.71E+048.25E+013.57E+031.72E+010.00E+000.00E+004.19E+012.03E-01
20051.85E+041.51E+048.14E+013.41E+031.84E+013.10E-021.68E-041.12E+016.07E-029.39E+005.07E-02
20061.56E+041.22E+047.81E+013.39E+032.17E+013.25E-062.08E-087.86E+005.03E-021.69E+011.08E-01
20071.56E+041.26E+048.10E+012.91E+031.87E+013.10E-021.99E-041.75E+011.12E-012.49E+011.60E-01
20081.12E+048.97E+038.04E+012.17E+031.94E+010.00E+000.00E+008.89E+007.97E-021.09E+019.73E-02
20091.36E+041.06E+047.84E+012.93E+032.16E+010.00E+000.00E+004.69E+003.45E-021.83E+001.35E-02
20101.42E+041.13E+047.99E+012.84E+032.00E+010.00E+000.00E+001.42E+011.00E-012.88E+002.03E-02
20111.40E+041.10E+047.84E+013.02E+032.15E+010.00E+000.00E+005.03E+003.59E-026.02E+004.30E-02
20121.58E+041.27E+047.99E+013.14E+031.99E+010.00E+000.00E+002.73E+001.73E-022.76E+011.75E-01
20131.82E+041.48E+048.12E+013.39E+031.87E+010.00E+000.00E+005.94E+003.27E-022.81E+011.55E-01
20141.71E+041.40E+048.21E+013.04E+031.78E+010.00E+000.00E+006.08E+003.55E-021.71E+011.00E-01
20151.81E+041.52E+048.41E+012.83E+031.56E+010.00E+000.00E+004.04E+002.23E-025.24E+012.90E-01
20161.77E+041.43E+048.10E+013.33E+031.88E+010.00E+000.00E+002.99E+001.69E-023.38E+011.91E-01
20171.64E+041.32E+048.04E+013.18E+031.94E+010.00E+000.00E+003.40E+002.07E-022.29E+011.40E-01
20181.59E+041.27E+047.98E+013.18E+032.00E+010.00E+000.00E+001.89E+001.19E-022.29E+011.44E-01
20191.60E+041.36E+048.51E+012.67E+031.67E+010.00E+000.00E+003.48E+002.18E-021.36E+018.47E-02
20201.40E+041.16E+048.29E+012.83E+032.02E+010.00E+000.00E+005.50E+003.93E-021.21E+018.64E-02
20211.30E+041.02E+047.85E+012.40E+031.85E+010.00E+000.00E+004.17E+003.21E-029.70E+007.46E-02
20221.28E+041.06E+048.30E+012.15E+031.68E+010.00E+000.00E+003.06E+002.39E-022.90E+012.27E-01
20231.15E+049.51E+038.24E+012.02E+031.75E+010.00E+000.00E+004.38E+003.80E-028.63E+007.48E-02
20241.19E+049.80E+038.23E+012.10E+031.76E+010.00E+000.00E+002.76E+002.32E-029.66E+008.11E-02

 

Hover mouse cursor over the figure to see values. Click legend elements to include/exclude from figure.

Trends in total beta discharges

Table 3 and Figure 3 show that the discharges of total beta activity (excluding tritium) from all nuclear installations have decreased markedly since 1989 (930 TBq) to 2024 (9.2 TBq). In 2024 total beta discharges decreased by around 4% from the previous year to about 9.6 TBq and represents the lowest recorded levels since 1989.

Historically, total beta discharges have been dominated by discharges from the reprocessing plants and the nuclear fuel fabrication plant at Springfields to a lesser extent. In 2024, the contribution of the reprocessing sub-sector increased slightly from 36% in 2023 to 44% of the total but this is still much lower than the peak contribution of this sub-sector (81% in 2007). This was due to higher reported total beta discharges from both Sellafield and La Hague in 2024.

The contribution of decommissioning discharges in 2024 was lower than 2023 which means this is the second highest contributing sub-sector in 2024 (40% of all installations). Discharges from decommissioning, and the management of historical or legacy waste, in 2024 was 3.8 TBq.

In 2024 power plants were the third largest contributor (16%) of total beta discharges after reprocessing and decommissioning. The discharge of 1.5TBq was the joint lowest recorded since 1989.

Discharges from the Nuclear Fuel Fabrication sub-sector remained as the smallest contributor to total beta discharges.

NF = All Nuclear Facilities
RP = Reprocessing Plants
NPP = Nuclear Power Plants
NFFEP = Nuclear Fuel Fabrication and Enrichment Plants
RDF = Research and Development Facilities
Decom = Decommissioning
% = % of all installations

Table 3: Total beta (excl. tritium) discharges 1989-2024 (TBq)
NFRP%NPP%NFFEP%RDF%Decom%
19899.30E+026.90E+02747.60E+0011.10E+02121.20E+0212.8NaNNaN
19904.90E+023.80E+02781.00E+0129.20E+01194.50E+000.9NaNNaN
19912.30E+021.80E+02783.80E+0023.90E+01176.30E+002.8NaNNaN
19922.70E+021.30E+02508.90E+0031.20E+02456.60E+002.5NaNNaN
19932.50E+021.70E+02671.10E+0146.30E+01258.20E+003.2NaNNaN
19943.20E+022.00E+02612.80E+0011.10E+02369.10E+002.8NaNNaN
19953.69E+022.43E+02667.25E+0021.12E+02307.20E+001.9NaNNaN
19963.35E+021.69E+02518.70E+0031.50E+02456.52E+001.9NaNNaN
19973.17E+021.67E+02539.11E+0031.40E+02441.05E+000.3NaNNaN
19982.69E+021.12E+02426.29E+0021.50E+02566.81E-010.3NaNNaN
19992.60E+021.26E+02486.02E+0021.28E+02494.17E-010.2NaNNaN
20001.74E+029.77E+01564.59E+0037.13E+01415.00E-010.3NaNNaN
20012.33E+021.41E+02616.40E+0038.51E+01364.61E-010.2NaNNaN
20022.37E+021.25E+02535.61E+0021.06E+02454.52E-010.2NaNNaN
20032.01E+029.69E+01486.88E+0039.70E+01485.35E-010.3NaNNaN
20041.63E+028.64E+01534.26E+0037.13E+01445.99E-010.4NaNNaN
20051.63E+025.44E+01334.31E+0031.03E+02638.77E-020.11.32E+001
20066.19E+013.66E+01593.72E+0062.07E+01336.36E-020.18.96E-011
20073.66E+012.96E+01813.22E+0092.99E+0081.34E-010.46.24E-012
20082.82E+012.09E+01741.52E+0054.58E+00166.71E-020.21.18E+004
20092.80E+012.15E+01772.09E+0073.27E+00122.06E-020.11.08E+004
20102.43E+011.53E+01633.24E+00134.45E+00182.99E-020.11.23E+005
20112.77E+011.84E+01673.32E+00124.99E+00182.15E-020.18.94E-013
20122.20E+011.25E+01574.20E+00194.54E+00212.96E-020.17.43E-013
20132.18E+011.08E+01494.64E+00212.71E+00122.13E-020.13.65E+0017
20142.07E+011.09E+01533.74E+00182.94E+00141.44E-020.13.10E+0015
20151.97E+011.23E+01623.38E+00171.84E+0091.07E-020.12.18E+0011
20162.33E+011.09E+01475.53E+00241.71E+0079.11E-030.05.17E+0022
20172.27E+011.23E+01545.52E+00248.40E-0141.16E-020.14.08E+0018
20181.70E+017.37E+00433.61E+00212.80E-0128.58E-030.15.75E+0034
20191.40E+016.62E+00473.15E+00231.10E-0111.15E-020.14.32E+0031
20201.34E+016.95E+00522.22E+00172.51E-0122.74E-020.23.94E+0029
20211.40E+017.17E+00511.77E+00134.78E-0202.72E-040.05.00E+0036
20221.22E+016.48E+00531.57E+00131.33E-0208.10E-030.14.15E+0034
20231.01E+013.61E+00361.65E+00164.33E-0302.49E-030.04.79E+0048
20249.60E+004.25E+00441.50E+00161.02E-0301.26E-020.13.83E+0040

 

Hover mouse cursor over the figure to see values. Click legend elements to include/exclude from figure.

Figures 4 to 6 give the same discharges data but for the period 1995 to 2024 only. Figures 4 to 6 therefore show the achievements of the OSPAR Strategy adopted in 1998.

 

Hover mouse cursor over the figure to see values. Click legend elements to include/exclude from figure.

 

Hover mouse cursor over the figure to see values. Click legend elements to include/exclude from figure.

 

Hover mouse cursor over the figure to see values. Click legend elements to include/exclude from figure.

Acknowledgement

This report has been prepared by the Expert Assessment Panel of the OSPAR Radioactive Substances Committee (RSC), led by Mr Andrew Pynn (United Kingdom) with the support of the OSPAR Secretariat. 

This section presents information on the location of the nuclear installations and data and information on liquid discharges for each OSPAR Contracting Party under the following categories of nuclear installations draining into the OSPAR Maritime Area:

Nuclear installation categories:
Table 1: Nuclear Power sub-sector
Table 2: Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing sub-sector
Table 3: Nuclear Fuel Fabrication and Enrichment sub-sector
Table 4: Nuclear Research and Development sub-sector
Table 5: Discharges associated with decommissioning activities that may include historical and legacy wastes.

Further detailed information with respect to individual plants is presented in endnotes after the entire set of tables.

The columns, headings and abbreviations used in the tables correspond to the reporting requirements set out in the current reporting format (OSPAR Agreement No. 2013/10).

The following abbreviations are used in the tables:
AGRAdvanced Gas Cooled Reactor
GCRGas Cooled Reactor
UNGGNatural Uranium Gas Graphite (French equivalent for GCR)
PWRPressurised Water Reactor
THTRThorium High Temperature Reactor
BWRBoiliing Water Reactor
NANot Applicable
NINo Information
NDNot Detectable
For radionuclides:
AgSilverGdGadoliniumRhRhodium
AmAmericiumIIodineRuRuthenium
BaBariumMnManganeseSSulphur
BeBerylliumNaSodiumSbAntimony
CCarbonNbNiobiumSeSelenium
CeCeriumNiNickelSrStrontium
CmCuriumNpNeptuniumTcTechnetium
CoCobaltPmPromethiumThThorium
CrChromiumPrPraeseodyniumUUranium
CsCaesiumPuPlutoniumYYttrium
EuEuropiumRaRadiumZnZinc
FeIronRbRubidiumZrZirconium

All data have been entered in the tables using continental decimal system. The data values are expressed in scientific number format, e.g. 0.0009 as 9.0E-04.

All data can be viewed and downloaded via: https://odims.ospar.org/en/submissions/ospar_discharges_nuclear_2024_07/

Location of nuclear installations
Country / CodeName of installationTypeDischarging into
Belgium
BE1DoelNPSSchelde
BE2TihangeNPSMeuse
BE3MolRDFRiver Mol-Neet
Denmark
DK1RisøDMLRWKattegat through Roskilde Fjord
France
FR1BellevilleNPSLoire
FR3CattenomNPSMosel
FR4ChinonNPSLoire
FR5ChoozNPS/FR5
DMLRWMeuseDMLRWMeuse
FR6Dampierre en-BurlyNPSLoire
FR7FessenheimNPSRhine
FR8FlamanvilleNPSChannel
FR9GolfechNPSGaronne
FR10GravelinesNPSNorth Sea
FR11Nogent-sur-SeineNPSSeine
FR12PaluelNPSChannel
FR13PenlyNPSChannel
FR14Saint LaurentNPSLoire
FR15La HagueNFRP/FR15
DMLRWEnglish ChannelDMLRWEnglish Channel
FR16CivauxNPSVienne
FR17Fontenay-aux-RosesDMLRWSeine
FR18Le BlayaisNPSGironde Estuary
FR19SaclayRDFEtang de Saclay
Germany
DE1aBiblis ADMLRWRhine
DE1bBiblis BDMLRWRhine
DE2BrokdorfNPSElbe
DE3BrunsbüttelDMLRWElbe
DE4GrafenrheinfeldNPSMain
DE5Grohnde/EmmerthalNPSWeser
DE8aKrümmel/GeesthachtDMLRWElbe
DE8bGeesthachtRDFElbe
DE9aLingen/EmslandNPSEms
DE9bLingenDMLRWEms - via municipal sewer system
DE10Mülheim-KärlichDMLRWRhine
DE11aNeckar-westheim 1DMLRWNeckar
DE11bNeckar-wesheim 2NPSNeckar
DE12ObrigheimDMLRWNeckar
DE13aPhilippsburg KKP1DMLRWRhine
DE13bPhilippsburg KKP2NPSRhine
DE14RheinsbergDMLRWHavel
DE15StadeDMLRWElbe
DE16Rodenkirchen-UnterweserDMLRWWeser
DE17Würgassen/BeverungenDMLRWWeser
DE18KarlsruheRDFRhine
DE19GronauNFFEPVechte, IJsselmeer
DE24HMI BerlinRDFHavel
DE25JülichRDFRur
DE26Mainz
The Netherlands
NL1BorsseleNPSScheldt Estuary
NL3AlmeloNFFEPMunicipal sewer system
NL4DelftRDFSewage system
NL5PettenRDFNorth Sea
Norway
NO1HaldenRDFRiver Tista (Skagerrak)
NO2KjellerRDFRiver Nitelva (Skagerrak)
Portugal
PT1Campus de SacavémRDFTagus River
Spain
ES1AlmarazNPSTagus
ES2José CabreraDMLRWTagus
ES3TrilloNPSTagus
ES4JuzbadoNFFEPRiver Tormes - Duero
Sweden
SE2Ringhals 1-4NPSKattegat
Switzerland
CH1BeznauNPSAare
CH2GösgenNPSAare
CH3LeibstadtNPSRhine
CH4MühlebergNPSAare
CH5Paul Scherrer InstituteRDFAare
CH6ZWILAG WürenlingenDMLRWAare
United Kingdom
UK1BerkeleyDMLRWSevern Estuary
UK2BradwellDMLRWNorth Sea
UK4ChapelcrossDMLRWSolway Firth
UK5aDungeness ADMLRWEnglish Channel
UK5bDungeness BNPSEnglish Channel
UK6HartlepoolNPSNorth Sea
UK7aHeysham 1NPSMorecambe Bay
UK7bHeysham 2NPSMorecambe Bay
UK8aHinkley Point ADMLRWSevern Estuary
UK8bHinkley Point BNPSSevern Estuary
UK9aHunterston ADMLRWFirth of Clyde
UK9bHunterston BNPSFirth of Clyde
UK10OldburyDMLRWSevern Estuary
UK11aSizewell ADMLRWNorth Sea
UK11bSizewell BNPSNorth Sea
UK12TornessNPSNorth Sea
UK13TrawsfynyddDMLRWTrawsfynydd lake
UK14WylfaDMLRWIrish Sea
UK15SellafieldNFRP and DMLRWIrish Sea
UK16CapenhurstNFFEPIrish Sea via Rivacre Brook and Mersey Estuary
UK17SpringfieldsNFFEPIrish Sea via River Ribble
UK18DounreayDMLRWPentland Firth
UK19HarwellDMLRWRiver Thames
UK20WinfrithDMLRWWeymouth Bay (English Channel)

NPS: Nuclear Power Stations   

NFRP: Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing Plants

RDF: Research and Development Facilities   

NFFEP: Nuclear Fuel Fabrication and Enrichment Plants

DMLRW: Decommissioning and Management of Legacy Radioactive Wastes

EC, 2003. Update of the MARINA Project on the radiological exposure of the European Community from radioactivity in North European marine waters. European Commission 2003.

OSPAR, 2006. Revised First Periodic Evaluation of Progress towards the Objective of the OSPAR Radioactive Substances Strategy (JAMP product RA-1). Publication 302/2006. ISBN 1-905859-40-6. http://www.ospar.org/documents?v=7053

OSPAR, 2009. Towards the Radioactive Substances Strategy objectives - Third Periodic Evaluation. Publication 455/2009.ISBN 978-1-906840-95-2. http://www.ospar.org/documents?v=7135

OSPAR, 2016. Towards the Radioactive Substances Strategy objectives - Fourth Periodic Evaluation. Publication 687/2016.ISBN 978-1-911458-17-3
http://www.ospar.org/documents?v=35337