Options for the rehabilitation of Maralinga

The UK atomic weapons tests at Maralinga, South Australia, produced about 830 tonnes of debris containing an inferred 20 kg of plutonium. This debris is presently in shallow land burial in debris pits at Maralinga. About 1.5 kg of plutonium has been estimated to be present in up to 460,000 t of surface soil at or near the Taranaki test site, Maralinga. This paper is a precis of the rationale of 'Options for Clean-up of the Maralinga Test Site', AAEC/DR20. The mutual interdependence of the remedial measures is discussed and indicative costs presented. Further data needed to resolve uncertainties in estimates is outlined